YUPIA, 4 Aug: The sessions court here in Papum Pare district has sentenced self-styled anti-drug activist Togo Rebe and his associate Kishor Tamang to life imprisonment after convicting them in an 11-year-old abduction-for-ransom case, holding that they had illegally detained a man, assaulted him, and extorted money from his family under the guise of anti-drug activities.

The court of Sessions Judge Dr Hirendra Kashyap sentenced the two convicts to imprisonment for life under Section 364A, read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on each.

 They were also prosecuted under Section 323 of the IPC for voluntarily causing hurt.

The sentencing order was passed on 3 August after the court heard submissions from the prosecution, the defence counsel and the convicts on the quantum of punishment. During the hearing, Rebe’s counsel pleaded for leniency, arguing that he is a first-time offender, a single parent of a six-year-old child, and has no previous criminal record. The defence further claimed that the victim had been using Rebe’s name while allegedly selling drugs, and that he had merely been detained for questioning without any criminal intent.

Tamang’s counsel also sought a lenient sentence, citing his clean antecedents and his responsibility towards his aged mother. However, additional public prosecutor N Kago argued that the offence attracted the minimum punishment prescribed under Section 364A IPC, and sought life imprisonment for both convicts.

Rejecting the plea for leniency, the court observed that Rebe had projected himself as the president of a self-styled anti-drug youth organisation and had been taking the law into his own hands. It noted that the convicts abducted the victim, detained him overnight until police rescued him, physically assaulted him,and demanded Rs 1.5 lakh from his father for his safe release. The court also recorded that Rs 20,000 was deposited into Tamang’s bank account as part of the ransom demand.

While acknowledging the absence of previous criminal records and considering the age of the convicts as mitigating factors, the court ruled that the gravity of the offence outweighed those considerations and held that they were not entitled to the benefit of probation or relief under Section 360 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

According to the judgment delivered on 22 July, the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the victim, Akhun Wangsa, was abducted near Capital Petrol Pump in Itanagar on 7 May, 2015, after being lured to the spot.

He was forcibly taken to Rebe’s residence, assaulted,and kept in confinement overnight. During his detention, Rebe allegedly contacted Wangsa’s father and demanded Rs 1.5 lakh for his release, threatening harm if the money was not paid.

The victim’s father, Amuk Wangsa, deposited Rs 20,000 into Tamang’s bank account as the first instalment of the ransom before informing the Bordumsa police. Acting on the information, the Itanagar police traced the victim to Rebe’s residence, rescued him, and arrested the accused.

Bank records and the deposit counterfoil formed part of the prosecution’s evidence during the trial. The case was headed by then sub-inspector K Pertin as the investigating officer.

In its judgment, the court held that private individuals, irrespective of their claims of fighting drug abuse, have no authority to apprehend, detain or punish any person outside the framework of law. It observed that Rebe, by portraying himself as the head of an anti-drug organisation, had taken unlawful action for personal gain, and that the prosecution had successfully established the offences of abduction for ransom and voluntarily causing hurt beyond reasonable doubt.