Madhumita Shukla’s sister appeals to Uttarakhand administration to not pardon her sister’s killer
PNS | DEHRADUN
The sister of poet Madhumita Shukla, who was brutally murdered in 2003, has made an emotional appeal to the Uttarakhand administration, urging it not to pardon Rohit Chaturvedi, one of the convicts in her sister’s murder, who is now seeking premature release. In a Press conference held in Uttranchal Press Club in Dehradun on Sunday, Nidhi Shukla, the main complainant in the case and sister of the victim, asked the State to deny the premature release to Chaturvedi, who is serving a life sentence in Haridwar jail.
She said that Chaturvedi had approached the Supreme Court seeking a premature release but the apex court had directed the Uttarakhand State-Level Committee to decide on the matter. Expressing her anguish, Shukla said, “I beg the administration of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand, to not commit the sin of pardoning my sister’s murderer Rohit Chaturvedi. This convict, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, has relentlessly targeted me since his incarceration.” She detailed the threats and attacks her family has reportedly endured over the years. She claimed that Chaturvedi’s associates have been intimidating her family in Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh, forcing them to live under constant fear. “We had to fortify our house with iron grills and even the police had to provide protection from inside the barricades. On March 11, 2024, armed men linked to Chaturvedi attacked our home. Thankfully, the presence of police personnel and guards prevented any casualties,” she claimed. The police later recovered ammunition from the scene and installed surveillance cameras in the area, as per Shukla.
She stated that between 2021 and 2025, she has filed numerous complaints against Chaturvedi, submitting hundreds of applications to the authorities. She claimed that she had repeatedly urged the State-level committee not to pardon a notorious history-sheeter like Chaturvedi. “If Chaturvedi is released, who is also a dangerous criminal and a relative of Amarmani Tripathi, he will not spare me or my family,” she claimed. Shukla stated that she plans to meet the committee officials again on Monday, armed with all the documents and registered complaints, to reiterate her plea. “Through this Press conference, I ask the Devbhoomi only this- will this land forgive the murderer who fired bullets at my sister?” she questioned.
