Chandigarh, Jan. 20 -- Four years after a Jhajjar man was awarded death sentence by a trial court in connection with the rape and murder of a five-year-old, the Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) has quashed the order and remanded back the case for a "re-trial over procedural irregularities."

Accused Vinod, 32, a plumber was awarded death sentence by the Jhajjar trial court on December 21, 2021 for "raping and murdering" the minor daughter of his tenant, a migrant labourer. According to the allegations, Vinod had kidnapped the girl from her house on December 20, 2020 and took her to his house, a few meters away from tenant's accommodation, where he raped her under the influence of liquor.

The girl was found dead a few hours later when t...