Aurangabad: Aurangabad district and sessions court on Monday sentenced a woman and her son to rigorous life imprisonment for the murder of a pregnant widow in Goh block. Calling the act “shocking to both society and humanity,” judge Nishit Dayal (Sessions Judge–VII) delivered the verdict after holding the accused guilty on May 24.The convicts—Kaushal Kumar and his mother Chandramani Devi—were found guilty under IPC Section 302 (murder) and sentenced to life imprisonment with rigorous labour and a fine of Rs 50,000 each. In case of default of payment, they will face an additional one year of simple imprisonment. Under IPC Section 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), both were sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 5,000 each, with an additional six months of simple imprisonment in case of non-payment. The sentences will run concurrently.According to govt prosecutor Satyendra Kumar Singh and advocate Satish Kumar Snehi, the victim, a widow from Charakawan village, was in a relationship with Kaushal and had become pregnant. She had allegedly been pressuring him to marry her, which led to tensions. On June 21, 2022, Kaushal, with his mother’s help, killed the woman using a sharp-edged weapon and later disposed of her body and severed head at different locations.The woman’s children were not home at the time of the crime. Following the recovery of the body, police showed the children their mother’s sari and remains. They confirmed her identity, which became a crucial turning point in the investigation. Based on their statements, the police arrested the accused, and upon interrogation, they led the police to the location where the severed head had been hidden.During the trial, the prosecution presented critical evidence, including the weapon used in the killing, photographs of the severed head and torso, the forensic science laboratory (FSL) report, postmortem report, and the death audit report. Investigating officer Shamim Ahmad’s deposition proved decisive in establishing the prosecution’s case.Invoking the Bihar Victim Compensation Scheme, 2014, the court directed the Aurangabad District Legal Services Authority to ensure adequate financial compensation to the widow’s children.