Singapore, July 17 — A 22-year-old Indian student, Legha Pawan, was sentenced to 35 months in prison on Wednesday for causing the death of a 33-year-old Punjab-origin man by pushing him into a river during a drunken incident last year.
The incident took place on the night of June 30, 2023, at Clarke Quay, a busy riverside entertainment hub in Singapore. According to court proceedings, both Pawan and the victim, Jasbir Singh, were intoxicated when an altercation ended with Pawan shoving Singh into the Singapore River.
Singh, a construction worker and sole breadwinner for his wife and two young children in India, drowned shortly after. His body was recovered several hours later by rescue divers after a passerby couple alerted authorities.
Originally charged with causing death by a rash act, Pawan pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of voluntarily causing grievous hurt. Another charge was taken into consideration, local outlet Channel News Asia reported.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Jheong Siew Yin said Pawan had been aware that Singh was heavily intoxicated and it was “reasonably foreseeable” that the push could result in serious harm. “He left the scene without offering any help,” she told the court, describing his actions as irresponsible and avoidant.
The court also heard that Pawan attempted to evade arrest and fled the scene, only to be apprehended the following morning.
Pawan’s defense attorney, however, argued that the push was not premeditated and described it as a “generic shove,” asserting that it did not target any vulnerable parts of the body. The lawyer also stressed that no weapon was used.
Under Singaporean law, voluntarily causing grievous hurt carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a fine of up to SGD 10,000, or both.
Jasbir Singh’s death left his young family in India without support. “He worked hard to provide for all of us,” a family member said in a statement shared through the Indian High Commission. “Now we are left with nothing but questions and grief.”
