AN Indian man who used a viper and cobra to murder his wife was sentenced to life in jail today, in what prosecutors called the “rarest of rare” cases.

Sooraj Kumar set loose a highly venomous Russell’s viper on his wife, Uthra, that left her in hospital for almost two months, said prosecutors.

The 28-year-old husband then obtained a cobra from a snake handler and threw it at his sleeping wife when the 25-year-old woman was recovering at her parents’ house.

Its poisonous bite killed Uthra.

Sooraj pleaded not guilty, but police said his phone records showed he was in touch with snake handlers and had watched snake videos before the killing in Kollam, Kerala, in March last year.

Sooraj stayed in the room with Uthra after the cobra bit her and went about his morning routine the next day when alerted by his mother-in-law, said prosecutors.

“The mode of execution and diabolic plan of the accused to murder Uthra, his bedridden wife, makes it (the case) fall into the category of rarest of rare,” said the public prosecutor, who had sought the death penalty.

Snake handler Vava Suresh said it is possible that Sooraj had “inflicted pain on the reptile to provoke it to bite”, the Hindustan Times quoted him as saying.

Uthra was from an affluent family, but her husband, a bank worker, was not well off.

Her parents became suspicious after Sooraj tried to take control of her property after the death.

Their marriage involved a big dowry, including a new car and 500,000 rupees (RM27,000).

According to media reports, Sooraj’s family were charged with conspiracy after some of Uthra’s gold was found buried near his home days after the murder. – AFP, October 13, 2021.