Fifteen years after a brutal crime shocked the city, justice has finally been served for a 21-year-old MBA student who was raped and murdered in Chandigarh. The Special Women and Child Court delivered its verdict on Thursday, convicting taxi driver Monu Kumar for the heinous 2010 crime.
The Long Road to Justice
Additional District and Sessions Judge Dr Yashika pronounced Monu Kumar guilty under sections 302 (murder) and 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code. The court will announce the quantum of sentence on Friday, bringing closure to a case that remained unsolved for over a decade.
The breakthrough came unexpectedly when Kumar was arrested in 2024 in connection with the rape and murder of another woman in Chandigarh's Maloya area in 2022. During police interrogation, the accused reportedly confessed to committing the 2010 crime in Sector 38, Chandigarh.
Forensic Evidence Provides Crucial Link
Investigators were able to connect Kumar to the 2010 case through advanced forensic analysis. The Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) concluded that both the 2010 and 2022 crimes were committed by the same individual. Police confirmed that Kumar's samples matched those collected from the crime scene.
According to sources familiar with the investigation, Kumar had previously been arrested for rape in Himachal Pradesh but was acquitted due to lack of evidence. This pattern of violent behavior highlights the dangerous nature of the convicted criminal.
Tragic Events of July 2010
The case dates back to July 30, 2010, when the 21-year-old MBA student left her home around 6 pm on a scooter to attend English-speaking classes. When she failed to return by 9 pm, her concerned father began making inquiries.
After contacting her friends, the family learned that their daughter had met a friend around 7:30 pm and departed approximately 15 minutes later. The growing concern turned into panic when they couldn't locate her anywhere.
The tragedy unfolded when the victim's father received a phone call informing him that his daughter's scooter had been found parked near a taxi stand in Sector 38 West with visible bloodstains. The discovery led them to the horrifying scene where they found the young woman's half-naked body lying in a pool of blood in nearby bushes.
The victim was immediately rushed to PGIMER hospital, but doctors declared her "brought dead" upon arrival. The Chandigarh police registered an FIR on July 31, 2010, based on the complaint filed by the victim's heartbroken father.
This conviction brings a measure of justice to a family that has waited fifteen years for closure, while also exposing the dangerous pattern of a serial offender who continued to commit crimes until his eventual capture.
