New Delhi: Manjunath's lawyer, I B Singh is happy that Monu Mittal has been given the death sentence but he is dissatisfied for he feels that two more people - Devesh Agnihotri and Rajesh Verma - should also have been awarded death penalty.
"Devesh Agnihotri and Rajesh Verma were equally responsible for Manjunath's death. They were the ones who helped Mittal kill him," he said.
Manjunath's father said in a choked voice, "We are grateful to the judiciary and the prosecution for the verdict. We hope that the other two will also be given death. The judge who pronounced the sentence was equal to God for us."
He said that the family, along with the Manjunath Shanmugam trust would now decide what to do in case the killer and the other accused appealed in the High Court.
Manjunath's mother said that they would fight for justice if the accused appealed in a higher court of law. "We are grateful for the fast track judgement," she added.
His brother said that he was happy that the people, the judiciary and the media came out in large numbers to support a middle class family like theirs.
"It is difficult for a middle class family to spend a lot of money and educate children. My parents made sure that my brother got the best of education. He was murdered for being honest and we are happy that people have supported us. We are proud of our judiciary and our media," he said.
He said that people like Devesh Agnihotri - who had 10 more crimes to his name - should not be spared by the authorities.
Manjunath's friend, Jai Shankar, said that the Manjunath Shanmugam trust was satisfied with the verdict. Nonetheless, he added that they were ready for a fight if the accused would appeal in High Court.
Meanwhile, IIM Lucknow professor, Sushil Kumar Singh said that the whole IIM community was waiting for the verdict.
"Manjunath was a real honest officer and finally justice has been done to his family. More and more Manjunaths will be able to do their work with honesty now. We have supported the Manjunath family in every aspect for the justice. This is the real message to the whole society that nobody can get away with heinous crimes as long as the Indian judicial system is active."
While there was celebration in one camp, the defence lawyer was lamenting the verdict.
He said that the investigation into the matter had not been conducted fairly. He said the police was trying to frame his client, Monu Mittal.
"We are not happy with the procedure of the investigation. We will go to the High Court and appeal there. There was no proper evidence in the case and I am not happy at all with the way in which the investigation was conducted," defence lawyer Vidya Dhar Pande said.
(With inputs from Arunima in Lakhimpur-Kheri)
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