A court in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr district on Monday sentenced all five convicts in the infamous NH-91 highway gang rape case to life imprisonment, imposing an additional fine of ₹1.81 lakh on each of them. The judgment brings a legal conclusion to a case that deeply disturbed public conscience after a mother and her minor daughter were sexually assaulted while being held hostage on the highway in 2016.
The verdict was pronounced by Additional District and Sessions Judge (POCSO) Om Prakash III, who described the ruling as an important moment in a case that had shaken the region. The court also directed that the total fine collected from the convicts be shared equally between the two survivors as compensation for the trauma they endured.
The incident occurred on July 29, 2016, when the family was travelling along National Highway-91 and was allegedly intercepted and taken hostage. During the ordeal, the mother and her underage daughter were gang-raped, an act that sparked widespread outrage at the time. Nearly nine years after the crime, the court’s decision has finally delivered a measure of justice to the victims and their family.
Originally, the case involved 11 accused persons. However, the legal process saw several developments over the years. The prime accused, Salim Bawariya, died while the trial was ongoing, and two other accused were killed in separate encounters by the Special Task Force. During its investigation, the Central Bureau of Investigation found three individuals innocent and removed their names from the case.
On Monday, the court held Zubair and Sajid from Kannauj, along with Dharamveer, Naresh and Sunil from Farrukhabad, guilty of the gang rape and sentenced each of them to life imprisonment. The ruling was based on the evidence and testimonies presented during the trial, according to the prosecution.
Reacting to the judgment, Assistant District Government Counsel (POCSO) Varun Kaushik said the court’s decision rested firmly on the material placed on record and reflected the strength of the prosecution’s case. On the other hand, defence counsel Shiv Charan Mahur said the convicts would challenge the verdict before the Allahabad High Court, arguing that there were serious issues related to evidence, identification procedures and DNA findings, and claiming that either the FIR or later disclosures in the case were false.
