A murder convict, awaiting the hearing of his appeal since 2016, has died, about nine months after the Supreme Court had hoped that the Bombay High Court would decide the matter within three months.

A trial court on May 5, 2016 had convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment four accused – Jitendra Fakirchand Rana alias Chaina, Satish Nafeshing Dulgaj, Sunil Omprakash Both @ Chota and Deepak Ishwar Omprakash Piwal for the murder of two youth Keenan Sentoz and Ruben Fernandes.

Chaina and Dulgaj were also found guilty of molesting a friend of murdered victims.

Dulgaj passed away this week after serving over 14 years in custody, a counsel representing the convicts said.

His 2016 appeal against the conviction had been admitted by the High Court in September 2017. 

Though the High Court had ordered the listing of his and others convicts appeals for final hearing in September 2021, subsequent orders reveal that the matter was adjourned on most dates.

The details of the cases are as tragic as the delay.

In the case pertaining to an incident dating back to October 2011, a group of seven friends — including three young women — went to a bar to watch a cricket match. During the evening, one of the women was sexually assaulted by the accused. When the male friends confronted the accused and slapped one of them, the accused men left the scene but later returned armed with knives and a wooden stick. They attacked the group, stabbing two of the woman’s friends, who later died from their injuries. 

Following their conviction, Chaina, Dulgaj, Omprakash and Piwal filed appeals before the Bombay High Court in 2016.

With Dulgaj’s death, his appeal will abate unless his relatives choose to pursue it on his behalf. During the pendency of the appeals, the father of one of the deceased also died on March 25 this year.

The delay in the case has occurred despite Supreme Court orders for expeditious decision in the matter. One of the main convicts - Chaina - had taken the case twice to the Supreme Court for suspension of his sentence.

In August 2023, the top court took note of the circumstances of the case and pendency of the appeal and declined to grant him any relief  “notwithstanding his incarceration for over ten years.” 

Chaina again approached the top court last year. In an order passed on March 18 this year, the apex court urged the High Court to take his appeal expeditiously, preferably within three months.

“In the facts and circumstances of the case coupled with the fact that the appeal is of the year 2016 and was listed for consideration, we expect that the High Court will do its best to ensure that the criminal appeal of the petitioner of the year 2016 be taken up for consideration most expeditiously, preferably within a period of three months,” the top court had ordered.

The High Court orders reveal that it was cognizant of the delay in deciding appeals. In an order passed on March 25, a Division Bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Dr. Neela Gokhale, wrote,

“The aforesaid appeals are listed under the caption of Directions for fixing date of hearing, pursuant to the order passed by the Apex Court on 18th February 2025. Presently, we have about more than 100 matters for admission every day on board i.e. on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and about 70 to 80 matters, i.e., the matters from the Original Side on Thursday and Friday. Considering that in some cases the accused are in custody for about more than 12 to 15 years in jail, we take up the said Appeals at 4:00 pm for final hearing on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Apart from the same, we also have Confirmation Appeal for final hearing. Considering the aforesaid, list the matter for final hearing on 30th April 2025 at 2:30 p.m.”

On July 2, a bench of Justices Sarang V Kotwal and Shyam C Chandak adjourned the matter for 14 days after State counsel sought time to appoint a senior counsel in the matter. This was after the brother of one of the deceased had requested the government to appoint a Senior Counsel to appear as Special Public Prosecutor in this case.

While granting the adjournment, the Court on that date said,

“At the same time, we are emphasizing the fact that the Appeal is expedited by the Hon’ble Supreme Court. The learned APP and the learned Counsel for the Intervenor are specifically told that they should take urgent steps and the matter will not be adjourned unnecessarily for unreasonable period.”

However, the matter was again adjourned “by consent” on August 12.  The latest order dated October 10 reveals that appeals were ordered to be listed on November 10 “for directions for fixing date of hearing”.

The orders also reveal that between these dates, the appeal kept shifting from one bench to another.