Kolhapur cannibal: Supreme Court stays death sentence of man who killed, cooked his mother

The Supreme Court recently stayed the execution of a death sentence of Sunil Rama Kuchkoravi, a man from Kolhapur, who was convicted of brutally murdering his mother, dismembering her and attempting to cook parts of her body [Sunil Rama Kuchkoravi v. State of Maharashtra]..A three-judge bench of Justices Surya Kant, Pankaj Mithal and Ujjal Bhuyan issued notice on the appeal preferred by the convict challenging the decision of Bombay High Court confirming the death sentence initially imposed by the trial court."Issue notice, returnable on 14.04.2025. Meanwhile, execution of the death sentence shall remain stayed. The records of the Trial Court as well as the High Court along with translated version and soft copies of the same be requisitioned," the Court said in its December 11 order.Advocates Payeshi and Vairawan AS appeared for the convict..The horrific event which unfolded on August 28, 2017 when Kuchkoravi murdered his 60-year-old mother, Yallava Kuchkoravi, at their home, eviscerated her body parts and tried to cook the parts of her body with salt and chilli powder..On October 1, a bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Prithviraj Chavan of the Bombay High Court confirmed the death sentence imposed by a Kolhapur sessions court in July 2021. The High Court found Kuchkoravi (appellant) guilty under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).It said that the acts of the man came close to cannibalism and there was no scope for his reformation."Since he was habituated of slaughtering and eating flesh of pigs and cats, perhaps he must have killed his mother in the similar manner in order to eat her flesh, which is evident from the record. We have, therefore, in para 31 of our judgment expressed our view as to how there is a strong probability of the convict having syndrome of pathological cannibalism," the High Court said.It also said that awarding imprisonment for life would be risky since he would be a potential danger to the other inmates in jail considering his inclination towards cannibalism. .Yallava, a widow living on a meagre pension, had been providing her son with meals despite his violent behaviour towards her.The crime was discovered when an eight-year-old neighbour girl discovered Yallava's body lying in a pool of blood while Kuchkoravi stood nearby with blood on his hands and clothes. The High Court highlighted the trauma inflicted not only on the victim but also on the society as a whole. The Court also addressed the disturbing implications of Kuchkoravi's actions, suggesting a possibility of "pathological cannibalism." It expressed disbelief at the defense's claims of insanity, noting that there was absolutely no material placed on record in that regard.’ .The old, fragile lady had absolutely no chance to defend herself from a well built hefty son whom she used to provide meals twice a day, the High Court said. .[Read Order]