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Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Monday upheld the 2014 conviction and life imprisonment of Sajjad Mughal, also known as Sajjad Pathan, for the murder of Mumbai lawyer Pallavi Purkayastha. Mughal, who worked as a security guard in the building, was found guilty of breaking into Purkayastha’s rented flat in Wadala on August 9, 2012, and killing her. The trial court had ordered that his life sentence would last for the remainder of his natural life.
A division bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Neela Gokhale confirmed that the life term would indeed mean imprisonment until Mughal’s death. Mughal was 25 years old when he was arrested. He had appealed against his conviction, while the State of Maharashtra had sought to increase the punishment from life imprisonment to the death penalty. In 2022, Pallavi’s father, IAS officer Atanu Purkayastha, also filed a petition requesting that the punishment be changed to a death sentence.
The High Court issued a notice to Mughal in September 2022 based on the father’s plea. The Wadala Truck Terminal police had registered the FIR on August 10, 2012, and Mughal was arrested the same day. Later, the case was handed over to the Mumbai Crime Branch. In 2014, Special Trial Court Judge Vrushali Joshi at the Mumbai Sessions Court convicted Mughal for murder, molestation, and criminal trespass.
During the trial, Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam demanded the death penalty, arguing that the crime was extremely brutal. However, after hearing defence lawyer Wahab Khan, the court ruled that it did not fall under the “rarest of rare” category and sentenced Mughal to life imprisonment instead.
The High Court heard arguments from Special Counsel Manoj Mohite for the State, lawyer Yug Chaudhry representing Mughal, and advocate Abhishek Yende appearing for Pallavi’s father. After closing the hearings on August 14, the court delivered its verdict on Monday. The victim’s father argued that the punishment given by the trial court did not match the gravity of the crime.
His plea stated that the accused’s actions clearly revealed his motive and that he had shown lustful intent toward the victim. It also said Mughal misused his position as a security guard, ensured that Pallavi was alone, and planned to assault her sexually before killing her.
While serving his sentence at Nashik Central Jail, Mughal was granted a 30-day parole in February 2016 to visit his ailing mother. However, he absconded and did not return to prison. The Mumbai Crime Branch later traced and arrested him in Jammu and Kashmir in 2017.
According to the prosecution, Mughal used stolen keys to enter Pallavi’s apartment. When she resisted his advances while asleep, he attacked her with a knife, slashing her throat and leaving her to bleed to death.
