President Droupadi Murmu has rejected the mercy petition of Ravi Ashok Ghumare, convicted for the brutal kidnapping, rape, and murder of a two-year-old girl in Maharashtra’s Jalna district in 2012, marking her third such decision since 2022 and underscoring resolve against child atrocities.
President Droupadi Murmu rejected Ravi Ashok Ghumare’s mercy petition on 6 November 2025 for the 6 March 2012 kidnapping, rape, and murder of a toddler in Jalna, Maharashtra-her third rejection since July 2022.
The Supreme Court upheld his death sentence on 3 October 2019, labelling the assault ruthless with the girl captive for hours until death. Rashtrapati Bhavan confirmed the decision as victim’s family remain silent, convict unresponsive, amid India’s push for swift justice in child crimes.
The Chilling Crime Scene
In Indiranagar locality, Jalna, Ravi Ashok Ghumare, then 22, lured the innocent two-year-old girl with a chocolate on 6 March 2012, vanishing with her around 11:30 am. He hid in a nearby house, locking one door from outside and another from inside, subjecting her to prolonged sexual assault over four to five hours.
Neighbours, alerted by cries, broke in to find them naked under a bed, blood oozing from her mangled body; she died en route to hospital from shock and haemorrhage. Ghumare fled but was nabbed soon after, his blood-stained clothes and DNA evidence sealing his guilt under IPC sections 302 (murder), 363 (kidnapping), 376 (rape), and 377 (unnatural offences).
The fast-track court in 2015 called it a “rarest of rare” case, sentencing death, affirmed by Bombay High Court and Supreme Court, which noted his “perverse lust crossed all boundaries” with no remorse.
This savagery shattered a poor family, the toddler’s parents who are daily wage earners a they lost their only child, their grief compounded by years of legal battles.
Medical reports detailed horrific injuries-lacerations, internal ruptures-humanising the statistics of India’s child abuse crisis, where NCRB logs over 50,000 cases yearly, many unreported in rural pockets like Jalna.
Judicial Marathon to Final Rejection
Ghumare’s appeals exhausted all remedies: trial court (2015), Bombay High Court (2016), Supreme Court (2019). The apex court dismissed his plea, observing he held the child captive “like an animal,” rejecting mercy claims of youth or reform potential. Post-SC, the mercy petition reached President Murmu, who, since 25 July 2022, rejected it-the third after two others in child rape-murder cases-signalling a pattern under her tenure amid 30+ mercy disposals.
Rashtrapati Bhavan updated the status online recently, with Nanded police (overseeing execution) informed; no official quotes beyond confirmations, but sources hail it as “justice upheld” for victims.
This aligns with post-Nirbhaya reforms: POCSO Act amendments mandating death for under-12 rapes resulting in death, though implementation lags with only 5% conviction rates in some states.
The timeline reflects systemic delays-13 years from crime to rejection-fuelled by appeals, yet contrasts faster disposals in high-profile cases. No family statements emerged, but similar cases see relatives decrying delays as “second murder,” urging black warrant issuance soon.
Broader Context: Child Safety Amid Rising Alarms
Jalna’s 2012 horror predates but echoes Nirbhaya (2012), spurring Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2012, strengthened in 2019 for harsher penalties. Yet, NCRB 2024 data shows 59 daily child sex offences, Maharashtra reporting 2,000+ yearly, rural areas worst-hit due to poor vigilance.
President Murmu’s rejections-third in child cases-mirror predecessors like Pranab Mukherjee (30+ rejections), but her focus on tribal/women issues adds weight, as Jalna’s victim hailed from a vulnerable community.
Experts link such crimes to impunity; a 2023 study by Tata Institute notes 70% perpetrators known to victims, urging community watches. Nationally, over 50 death rows for child murders since 2013, but executions rare-last in 2020-sparking debates on capital punishment’s deterrent value.
Government initiatives like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao and child helplines exist, but gaps persist: understaffed one-stop centres, low FIR rates. This case reignites calls for fast-track POCSO courts nationwide, targeting 1,000 pending disposals in Maharashtra alone.
Precedents and Policy Ripple Effects
Murmu’s stance sets precedent amid mercy plea backlog-over 100 pending per Home Ministry. Her prior rejections involved similar depravity: one for gang-rape of a minor, another toddler murder, reinforcing “rarest rare” doctrine from Bachan Singh (1980).
Legal circles note no convict-side advocacy here, unlike Bilkis Bano where politics intervened. Post-rejection, execution follows Maharashtra protocol: black warrant, hanging at Yerwada or Nagpur jail. This bolsters public faith, polls showing 80% Indians back death for child rapists-murderers (Lokniti-CSDS 2024).
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Rejecting this plea delivers empathy to a ravaged family and deters predators, nurturing harmony through justice that prioritises innocence over indulgence.
Prolonged mercy delays torment survivors, undermining coexistence; society must pivot to prevention-vigilant neighbourhoods, robust reporting, empathy-driven upbringing. Kindness thrives when shielded by accountability, fostering peace sans predators.
