Soumya Vishwanathan Murder Case: Mother Opposes Bail For Convicts; Hearing On April 22

Madhavi Viswanathan, the mother of journalist Soumya Vishwanathan, who was shot dead 15 years ago, has filed a petition in Supreme Court against the bail granted to Ravi Kapoor and other three convicts by Delhi High Court. The matter is scheduled to be heard on Monday, April 22.

On February 12, the Delhi High Court had granted bail to four convicts who were serving life imprisonment sentence.

Speaking to OneIndia, Madhavi expressed outrage at the High Court's decision. She said, "I am just against the way the High Court dealt with it. Less than a month before the High Court granted the bail, it had itself denied bail to Ravi Kapoor, citing that during his incarceration, Kapoor had committed more than 41 punishable offenses. Furthermore, the Saket Court had sentenced Kapoor and others to double life imprisonment. Granting bail until the petition filed by Ravi Kapoor and others against the Saket Court verdict is heard, is a mockery of justice."

How was Soumya Vishwanathan murdered?

Soumya Vishwanathan worked with a leading English news channel. In 2008, while Vishwanathan was returning home from work in her car she was shot dead in the early hours of September 30 on Nelson Mandela Marg in south Delhi.

The motive behind her murder, according to the Delhi Police, was robbery. Ravi Kapoor, who was convicted in the case, allegedly shot Vishwanathan with a country-made pistol while attempting to rob her, accompanied by three others.

In November 2023, a special court sentenced Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Baljeet Malik, and Ajay Kumar to two life imprisonment under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC and Section 3(1)(i) of the MCOCA. The court also imposed a fine of ₹1.25 lakh on each of them.

Ajay Sethi, the fifth convict, received three years of simple imprisonment under section 411 of the IPC, along with a fine of ₹7.25 lakh.

On February 12, the Delhi High Court suspended the life imprisonment sentences of Kapoor, Shukla, Malik, and Kumar. Ajay Sethi's sentence was adjusted for time served during the appeal's pendency.