BJP MLA Sentenced to 4 Years for 2018 Celebratory Firing Death

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Raju Kumar Singh has been sentenced to four years imprisonment by a Delhi court for his involvement in a celebratory firing incident that resulted in a woman's death in 2018. The court also directed Singh to pay ₹25 lakh in compensation to the husband of the deceased.

The incident occurred on New Year's Eve in 2018 at a farmhouse in South Delhi. Singh, a sitting BJP MLA from Bihar's Sahebganj, fired a bullet in the air while celebrating. The stray bullet tragically hit and killed Archana Gupta, a 45-year-old woman and wife of the complainant Vikas Gupta, who was attending the party organized by Singh's brother.

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I committed the offence due to a lack of scientific knowledge.

Last month, the court convicted Singh in the case. During the sentencing arguments, Singh had urged the court to spare him a jail term. He argued that he committed the offense due to a "lack of scientific knowledge," claiming he could not have anticipated the parabolic trajectory the fired bullet would take. These submissions were made before Special Judge Vishal Gogne of Rouse Avenue Courts.

The court of Special Judge Vishal Gogne delivered the sentence and compensation order. Singh was found culpable of homicide for the death of Archana Gupta. The conviction and sentencing mark a significant legal outcome for the celebratory firing incident that led to a tragic loss of life.

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I could not have anticipated the parabolic trajectory the fired bullet would take.