High Court grants bail to murder convict for his law exams

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court (HC) on Friday granted bail to a 31-year-old murder convict so he can appear for his first-year law exams. A division bench comprising justices G S Kulkarni and Advait Sethna was hearing a plea by Sohail Ansari, who was convicted in 2021 by a sessions court in Dindoshi, amongst other things, for killing his neighbour Ramesh Jadhav in 2014.

The murder took place during Diwali in 2014 when Ansari and his three accomplices — Yusufali Wali Mohammed Sajida, Imran Anwar Kazi, and Gullu Wali Mohammed Sajida — were physically assaulting two brothers, Jayesh and Hitesh, and their mother Dayaben Trivedi, who resided in Baban Jadhav Chawl in Malad. Jadhav, who lived in a nearby residential society, came to the spot with his cousin, Rajesh, to pacify the brawl. At this, Ansari began to beat up Rajesh and Ramesh initially with kicks and fist blows, then attacked him and Trivedi with a sword. Ramesh was taken to a nearby hospital where he was declared dead.

“Sohail hurriedly went to his home and returned with a sword and inflicted blows on Dayaben Trivedi’s hand and Ramesh Jadhav’s body,” the Dindoshi court recorded before sentencing him to life imprisonment.

In 2023, Ansari challenged his conviction, alleging procedural lapses and insufficient evidence, such as delayed recovery of CCTV footage and discrepancies in eyewitness testimonies. He had also sought bail from the high court in May 2024 to appear for the Maharashtra common entrance test for law. Considering his young age and good behaviour, Ansari was granted temporary bail from the high court.