Indian student jailed for attemted murder in Singapore

Singapore, Jul 3 (UNI) An Indian marine engineering student at a Singapore institute was sentenced to 16 years jail and to be meted out 16 strokes of the cane for viciously slashing the father of his ex-girlfriend and two maids working for the girl's family two years ago.

Batla Jatin Navin, a 23-year old student at a Singapore polytechnic institute, had pleaded guilty yesterday to one charge of attempted murder, one charge of wrongful restraint and two charges of causing grievous hurt.

High Court Judge Kan Ting Chiu said the attack on the girl's 72-year-old father, Shahani Manik Ram, in June 2006 had been ''premeditated.'' Shahani had objected to Navin seeing his 38-year-old web designer daughter, Mumta Shahani, who was divorced with an eight-year-old son. Shahani, a retired Singaporean shipping magnate, lost one litre of blood and needed emergency surgery after the stabbing in his bungalow in Singapore's posh housing estate.

Navin, studying under a shipping company scholarship, was sentenced 10 years of jail and six strokes for attempted murder of Shahani, and six years and 10 strokes for hurting the two maids.

While Navin pleaded for leniency for the sake of his widowed mother who has sold her house to pay for the trial, Justice Kan told him that he had wrecked a promising career.

''By committing the offences you have brought tragedy onto yourself and your widowed mother and destroyed everything,'' Justice Kan said.

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