Overview

• The Panvel Sessions Court sentenced Abhay Kurundkar to life imprisonment for the premeditated murder and dismemberment of Assistant Police Inspector Ashwini Bidre-Gore in 2016.
• The court relied on circumstantial and technical evidence under the corpus delicti doctrine, as Bidre-Gore's remains were never recovered.
• Two co-accused, Kundan Bhandari and Mahesh Phalanikar, were sentenced to seven years for evidence destruction but were released due to time already served.
• The court refrained from imposing the death penalty, citing the lack of 'exceptional' circumstances and the potential for Kurundkar's reform.
• An inquiry has been ordered into investigative failures by Navi Mumbai police officers, including delays and negligence in the early stages of the case.