Kollam Court finds accused guilty in Dr Vandana Das murder case

Kollam: In a landmark verdict, the Kollam Additional Sessions Court on Tuesday found the accused guilty of murdering Dr Vandana Das, a young doctor brutally attacked while on duty at Kottarakkara Taluk Hospital in May 2023. The court is scheduled to announce his sentence on March 19.

Additional Sessions Judge P N Vinod delivered the judgment, ruling that Sandeep is not protected under Section 84 of the Indian Penal Code, which offers a legal defence for individuals with unsound minds. The court convicted him under eight sections of the IPC, including murder, attempt to murder a police officer, destruction of evidence, and obstructing a public servant. He was also found guilty under provisions of the Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property) Act.

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The case relied heavily on comprehensive police and medical evaluations. Following his arrest, Sandeep underwent a psychiatric assessment, which concluded he displayed no signs of mental illness. A subsequent medical board evaluation on May 19, 2023, confirmed his mental fitness and recommended expert monitoring while in prison, which further upheld the initial findings.

According to Onmanorama, "It was proven that the accused pretended signs of mental disorder to mislead the investigation. Till the day before he killed her, he had acted normally. It was a shocking case of a doctor being killed by the patient while engaged in the noble act of saving a life. The very place where such a heinous act happened also lends solidity to the demand that the case should be treated as the rarest of rare," said Padikkal.

The tragic incident occurred on May 10, 2023, when the accused was brought to the hospital by the Pooyappally police for a routine medical examination, suddenly attacked hospital staff with surgical scissors that he had secretly obtained. The doctor sustained multiple stab wounds and, despite initial treatment at a private hospital in Kottarakkara, was later declared dead at a hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. Several police personnel and hospital staff were also injured in the attack.

The 23-year-old doctor was the only daughter of Mohandas and Vasanthakumari from Muttuchira near Kaduthuruthy in Kottayam district. She had recently completed her MBBS and was serving as a house surgeon at Kottarakkara Taluk Hospital.

Medical Dialogues had previously reported that, noting that no specific reasons were pointed out to doubt the integrity or credibility of the investigation, the Kerala High Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea seeking a transfer of probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the brutal killing of Dr Vandana Das by a patient at a taluk hospital in Kollam district.

The trial, which began in February 2025, examined more than 70 witnesses and included 207 documents as evidence. The prosecution relied on testimonies from doctors, nurses, ambulance drivers, security personnel, and police officers. Witnesses also included colleagues who testified that he had shown no prior behavioural issues and had carried out his duties normally as a teacher.

The prosecution further noted that he had secretly obtained surgical scissors and carried out the attack, citing Supreme Court precedents that the act could not be excused on grounds of insanity. During proceedings, the court questioned the accused by reading out the evidence. He denied all allegations, including statements from Dr Mohammed Shibin, who was on duty with the deceased on the night of the attack.

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The court will deliver the final sentence on March 19, 2026.