New Delhi: A Delhi court today (Nov 7) sentenced former Youth Congress leader Sushil Sharma to death in the Naina Sahni murder case.

Additional Sessions Judge G P Thareja sentenced his accomplice Keshav Kumar to seven years rigorous imprisonment for conspiring with Sharma to burn Sahni's body in the tandoor (kiln) of Baghiya Restaurant at the Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC)-owned Ashok Yatri Niwas in the heart of the capital.

The court ordered that Sharma be "hanged by the neck till dead".

Sharma was also sentenced for the offence under Section 120 (B) (conspiracy) read with Section 201 (destruction of evidence) of Indian Penal Code (IPC) to seven years rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 10,000.

A fine of Rs 10,000 was also imposed on Keshav, who was found guilty of conspiring with Sharma to destroy the evidence in the case.

The court directed that the file of the case be sent to Delhi High Court for confirming the death sentence imposed on Sharma.

The Court on Monday (Nov 2) had convicted Sharma for murdering his wife Naina Sahni, suspecting her fidelity, and later burning her body in a tandoor of a restaurant in New Delhi over eight years ago.

The court had held Sharma and Keshav, who was then manager of the restaurant guilty for conspiring to cause disappearance of the evidence of murder.

Keshav had assisted Sharma to dispose of Sahni's body in a tandoor there.

However, the court had acquitted him of charges under Section 302 (murder), saying it was not proved.

The other three accused in the case – Jai Prakash Pehlwaan, Rishi Raj Rathi and Ram Prakash Sachdeva – were acquitted of the charges of harbouring the accused.

PTI