Justice for Jessica Lall

The Supreme Court has upheld the life term for Manu Sharma aka Siddharth Vashisht who was convicted for the 1999 murder of Jessica Lall. Here's a recap of the ten-year trial:

>>u00a0Jessica was a model in New Delhi, who was working as a celebrity barmaid at a crowded socialite party at the newly opened Tamarind Court restaurant, at Qutub Colonnade, when she was shot dead on April 29, 1999.

>>u00a0Manu, the 24-year-old son of former Union minister Venod Sharma, drove up to the restaurant with a few friends.

>>u00a0At 2 am, the drinks were over and Manu asked Jessica for another round of drinks. She refused; he then tried to offer a thousand rupees, which she refused as well.

>>u00a0The inebriated and enraged Manu shot Jessica twice at point blank range, the first bullet hitting the ceiling, while the second hit Jessica on her temple.

>>u00a0Manu and his friends absconded and were arrested only in May.

>>u00a0The trial continued to progress at a snail's pace till Jessica's sister Sabrina garnered huge public support through the media. Manu eventually confessed to shooting Jessica in a statement to the police.

>>u00a0On December 15, 2006, the High Court bench, in a 61-page judgement held Manu guilty based on existing evidence. On December 20, 2006, Manu was awarded life imprisonment.