The jury in the Assizes unanimously found him guilty. Swaraj Seetal was sentenced to 37 years’ imprisonment for murder and his mother Hansranee Seetal to 18 months’ imprisonment for failing to assist a person in danger. Judge Luchmyparsad Aujayeb delivered his verdict on Tuesday.
Swaraj Seetal, a bus driver, was charged with manslaughter. He was accused of killing his wife Hema Basama on 26 September 2017 at Rue La Chaux, Mahébourg. His mother Hansranee was also being prosecuted at the Assizes on the charge of non-assistance to a person in danger. By a majority of eight to one, she was found guilty by the jury. Both had pleaded not guilty.
In 2017, Hema Basama, a 25-year-old bank employee, was found dead in her home. Swaraj Seetal, aged 21 at the time, said that his wife had committed suicide. But the autopsy revealed that she had been strangled.
A withdrawal from Hema Basama’s bank account led to an argument that ended in tragedy.
