Silchar court awards life term to three in 2004 Munna Majumdar murder case

More than two decades after a murder that shook Silchar and triggered curfew in the town, a Fast Track Court in Cachar has delivered a decisive verdict, sentencing three men—including a local businessman—to life imprisonment in the 2004 Munna Majumdar killing.

In a significant judgment delivered on Wednesday, February 25, the Court of the Additional Sessions Judge (Fast Track Court), Cachar, presided over by Bankim Sharma, sentenced three individuals to life imprisonment in the sensational 2004 murder case of Munna Majumdar.

The convicts have been identified as cloth merchant Dhanraj Surana, a resident of Swarupa Complex in Janiganj, Silchar, along with his two employees, Ratan Debnath and Rinku Dev alias Madhusudan Dev, both residents of Udharband.

Munna Majumdar, a resident of Shiv Colony in Silchar, was employed at Surana Garments, owned by Dhanraj Surana. According to court records, on November 5, 2004, Surana and his two employees took Majumdar to Silchar Medical College and Hospital, where he was declared brought dead. The circumstances surrounding his death immediately raised suspicion, sparking public outrage and unrest across the town.

The incident led to a serious deterioration in the law-and-order situation in Silchar at the time, forcing authorities to impose curfew to prevent escalation of violence. The case drew widespread attention, not only because of the employer-employee relationship between the accused and the deceased, but also due to the intensity of public reaction that followed.

After years of legal proceedings, examination of evidence, and witness testimonies, the Fast Track Court concluded the trial and pronounced life imprisonment for all three accused, bringing long-awaited closure to a case that had remained etched in public memory for over two decades.

Legal observers have described the verdict as a reaffirmation of the judiciary’s commitment to ensuring accountability, regardless of social or economic standing. The judgment is expected to be seen as a strong message against criminal impunity and a milestone in one of Silchar’s most discussed criminal cases.