Delhi HC Suspends Life Term Of Woman Convicted Of Murder, Citing Care Of Her Three Children

The Delhi High Court has suspended the life sentence of a woman convicted for the murder of her alleged paramour, taking note of her prolonged incarceration and the condition of her three minor children, one of whom, a two-year-old, has been living with her inside prison.

A Division Bench of Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice Manoj Jain said that the 35-year-old appellant had already spent over ten years and nine months in jail and that her appeal was unlikely to be heard anytime soon.

“We are also concerned about the fact that the appellant is a lady and that her one child, who is barely two years old, is with her in prison, and her aged parents may not be in the best position to take their adequate care,” the Court said while ordering suspension of her sentence pending appeal.

According to the prosecution, the dismembered body of one Saleem was found in two separate plastic bags in 2011 in Indirapuram and Shakti Khand, Uttar Pradesh. Saleem’s father had reported him missing on June 18, 2011, a day after he failed to return home. Investigators later alleged that appellant and her husband killed Saleem, cut the body into pieces with sharp-edged weapons, and dumped the remains in plastic bags.

The trial court convicted the couple under Sections 302, 201, and 120B of the Indian Penal Code, sentencing them to life imprisonment.

Before the High Court, the appellant argued that she had been wrongly convicted on circumstantial evidence. Her counsel told the court that there was “no direct evidence linking the appellant with the alleged act of murder” and that the trial court had erroneously relied upon disclosure statements and recoveries made during police custody, which are inadmissible under Section 25 of the Evidence Act and not corroborated by any independent witness.

The defence pointed out that the alleged motive, an illicit relationship with the deceased, was speculative and unsupported by any material on record. “Mere motive cannot take the place of proof,” counsel argued, adding that Rajia had maintained good conduct in jail, was working as a crèche sahayak, and regularly sent small earnings home to her family.

Her husband remains in judicial custody, while her other two children, aged 10 and 7, are with her parents, who are 91 and 85 years old. The counsel pleaded that their condition and the child’s presence in prison should weigh with the court.

Opposing the plea, the APP for the state called the crime heinous and gruesome. He said appellant, in conspiracy with her husband, had lured Saleem to their house and murdered him with a sharp-edged weapon before dismembering the body.

However, the Court found that the motive did not convincingly implicate her. “If there was any such illicit relationship, it is not comprehensible as to why the appellant herein would kill him,” the Court said. “Undoubtedly, her husband… may have a grudge or vendetta against the deceased, but the motive attributed to the appellant does not appear to be forceful enough.”

Taking into account the duration of incarceration, her conduct, and the pending appeal, the Court said that “keeping in mind the above-noted aspects and also the incarceration period of the appellant and the fact that there is no likelihood of her appeal being heard in the near future, the sentence awarded to the appellant is hereby suspended.”

The appellant was directed to furnish a personal bond of Rs 25,000 with one surety of like amount to the satisfaction of the trial court. She has been ordered not to leave India without prior permission, to surrender her passport, and to provide her current address and contact details to both the trial court and the investigating officer.

The judges clarified that their observations were prima facie and shall not be construed as an expression on the merits of the case.

Case title: Rajia @ Sabbo v. State

Bench: Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Manoj Jain 

Order: 13 October 2025