No scope for reform: Court upholds death penalty of man who fried mother’s organs

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence of Sunil Rama Kuchkoravi, a Kolhapur man convicted of murdering his mother in 2017 and attempting to cook parts of her body.
The judgement, delivered by a bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Prithviraj Chavan, described the case as one of “cannibalism” and “barbarism,” falling under the “rarest of rare” category of crimes. The court also said there was “no scope for reform” in the case.
Kuchkoravi, who was sentenced to death by a Kolhapur court in 2021, appeared via video conference from Yerwada prison as the court confirmed the ruling.
Justice Chavan remarked, “This case falls under the rare of rarest as he not only killed his own mother, but he removed her body parts and was about to cook her heart and had put the ribs in oil and was about to eat. This is cannibalism and thus it comes under the rarest of rare cases.”
Justice Dere emphasised the brutality of the crime, stating, “We have not come across a more gruesome and barbaric case.” The court also expressed concerns that if Kuchkoravi were to be sentenced to life imprisonment, he would pose a threat to other inmates.
The murder, which occurred on August 28, 2017, sent shockwaves across the state. According to the prosecution, Kuchkoravi killed his 63-year-old mother, Yallama Rama Kuchkoravi, before mutilating her body and attempting to cook some of her organs.
Defense attorneys Yug Mohit Chaudhry and Payoshi Roy argued that the state should have considered the convict’s background, mental health, and socio-economic conditions as mitigating factors. They suggested that Kuchkoravi be given an opportunity to present evidence of any possible mental illnesses or unstable behaviour.
The court then sought psychiatric and psychological evaluations of the accused. On Tuesday, the High Court upheld the death sentence awarded to Kuchkoravi.
Kuchkoravi was informed that he had 30 days to file an appeal.