HC upholds conviction of 13 PWP members acquits four for assaulting NCP workers

Observing that enmity is a doubleedged sword, the Bombay High Court, on Thursday, acquitted four men and upheld conviction of 13 under the charges of murder and attempt to murder. The men belong to the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP) and were convicted for boycotting and attacking members of their village, who joined the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in 2012.

A bench of Justices Sadhana Jadhav and Nizamoodin Jamadar was seized with the criminal appeals filed by Prakash Khandekar and 16 other members of his family - all of them members of the PWP. As per the prosecution case, these accused and the victims were residents of Roha village in the neighbouring Raigad district. The Khandekars were unhappy with 17 families from their village leaving the PWP and joining the NCP. The PWP members, accordingly, had decided to socially boycott the newly joined NCP members. The ones from the NCP faction were disallowed from using community halls and even utensils. They were even denied darshan of their village temple and the goddess.