Kolkata, Dec 2 : In a six-year-old case, a district court judge in West Bengal on Tuesday sentenced a couple to life imprisonment for murdering a young man in a dispute over Rs 100.

The Chinsurah Court in Hooghly district found the couple guilty and therefore announced the quantum of punishment.

According to court sources, Mohammad Anwar was found lying in a pool of blood in front of a shop in the Kantapukur area of â??â??Magra in Hooghly district on June 7, 2019. The 23-year-old youth's home was in Notungram in the Magraganj area. Police rescued him while patrolling the area. But when he was taken to the Mogra Rural Hospital, the doctors declared that the youth had already died.

The deceased's maternal uncle, Ranjit Sau, filed a murder complaint with the local police station the next day. He named one Krishna Baul Das and Lakshmi Roy as the accused.

During the investigation, the police found an eyewitness. He said that he had seen Anwar arguing with the accused couple. Based on that information, the police arrested the accused, and accordingly, a case was started.

The public prosecutor for the plaintiff was Subrata Bhattacharya. He recorded the testimony of a total of 24 people.

According to the police, Lakshmi used to receive Rs 100 from Anwar. The two quarrelled over why the money was being delayed. At that time, Lakshmi's partner, Krishna, smashed Anwar's head with a brick. Both of them fled, leaving behind the body. They were later arrested.

On Tuesday, Additional District and Sessions Judge Sanjay Kumar Sharma of the Chinsurah court pronounced the sentence. Along with the life sentence, the couple was fined Rs 5,000.

The court also ordered compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the mother of the deceased. Sources said the family of the deceased youth was happy with the district court's verdict.

/IANS