Celebratory firing murder case: Bihar BJP MLA Raju Kumar Singh gets 4-year jail

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday sentenced Bihar BJP MLA Raju Kumar Singh, convicted in a 2018 case in which a woman was killed in celebratory firing, to simple imprisonment for four years and slapped a fine of Rs 25 lakh.

Special Judge Vishal Gogne pronounced the substantive portion of the sentence orally.

"The convict is sentenced to 4 years simple imprisonment under Section 304 part II of the IPC and 2 months imprisonment under the Arms Act," he said.


Judge Gogne said that Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator from Bihar's Sahebganj, will also pay a compensation of Rs 25 lakh to the family members of the victim.

Earlier on Friday, Singh had urged the court to release him on probation, arguing that he had no intention to cause death and had an otherwise unblemished record as a public representative.

Singh (56) was convicted under section 304 part II (culpable homicide not amounting to murder with knowledge) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and under provisions of the Arms Act relating to contravention of licence conditions.

The case pertains to a celebratory firing at a New Year party at a farmhouse in Fatehpur Beri here, which resulted in the death of a woman.

In a 97-page order, the court had on June 6 said, "The acts of celebratory firing during festivities are a scourge which often cause fatalities in our country.

"The present case reflects a similar tragedy where alleged acts of reckless celebratory firing by accused 1 (Raju Kumar Singh), a multiple-term MLA from Bihar, caused the death of a guest in a New Year's party on the intervening night of December 31, 2018, and January 1, 2019."

Noting the evidence before it, the court had said it was established that Singh, who had been identified by multiple witnesses, fired the fatal bullet which caused the death of the victim, Archana Gupta.