Indian medic's murderer jailed for life

KOLKATA:

The rapist and murderer of an Indian doctor was sentenced to life in prison Monday for a gruesome crime that sparked nationwide protests.

The family of the 31-year-old medic broke into tears saying they were "shocked" at the sentence and had hoped her murderer would be hanged.

But Judge Anirban Das said the case did not deserve the death penalty as it was not "the rarest of the rare cases", and ordered that Sanjoy Roy must spend his life behind bars.

Roy, 33, the lone accused in the case, who had been a civic volunteer in the hospital, was arrested a day after the victim's body was discovered.

The victim's mother and father, who were seated close to Roy in court on Monday, have said they wanted Roy to be executed.

"We are shocked by the verdict", the victim's father told AFP, tears running down his face.