Two brothers, who have been on death row for almost two decades, had their sentences commuted to life imprisonment by acting Chief Justice Ian Chang in the High Court yesterday.
Bharatraj and Lallman Mulai, who were found guilty by the court and sentenced to death on 6 July 1994, had been on death row for a total of 18 years.
However, their sentences were commuted by Justice Chang after their attorney, Nigel Hughes, filed a motion on their behalf arguing that the death penalty is inhumane.
The Mulai brothers were charged with the murder of Doodnauth Seeram, which occurred between August 29 and 31, 1992.
The prosecution’s case was that the brothers and Seeram had an argument over cows grazing on the latter’s land. During the course of the argument, the brothers repeatedly chopped Seeram with a cutlass and a weapon similar to a spear.
After Seeram fell to the ground, they
