English court increases the minimum term for the killer of student Henry Nowak from 21 to 25 years

Sentence ruled 'unduly lenient'

The Court of Appeal of England and Wales on Thursday raised the minimum term of imprisonment for Vikrum Digva, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of 18-year-old student Henry Nowak, stabbed to death in Southampton on 3 December 2025. This was reported by the Anadolu agency; BBC News clarified that the decision was made following an application by Attorney General Ellie Reeves under the scheme for reviewing 'unduly lenient' sentences. The minimum term was increased from the 21 years imposed in June by the Southampton court to 25 years.

Two appeals, two different outcomes

The case was considered from both sides at once: Reeves sought a harsher sentence, while Digva himself, now a 23-year-old inmate at HMP Frankland, challenged it as 'manifestly excessive'. The judges — Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr, Justice Nicklin and Justice Wall — dismissed the defence's appeal and sided with the Attorney General. Baroness Carr stated that the original term 'inadequately reflected the overall seriousness of the killing' and that it was 'not merely lenient but unduly so'. According to her, the first-instance judge was entitled to start from a starting point of 15 years, since he found that Digva had not carried the knife with criminal intent, but the use of a large kirpan dagger required a 'very substantial uplift' in the term. The court also accepted that some aggravating factors — for example, the public outcry that Digva had not foreseen — should not have been held against him.

Circumstances of the killing and the reaction

According to the BBC, Digva struck Nowak with a large dagger on Belmont Road in Southampton. He wore a small kirpan around his neck and a larger one at his waist, in keeping with the tradition of the Sikh order of the Nihang; the law permits the carrying of a kirpan for religious reasons. The judge noted that the lawfulness of the initial carrying of the knife 'does not diminish the seriousness of its subsequent fatal use'. The prosecution added that Digva abused this religious exemption, which 'in one sense is analogous to an abuse of trust'. After the attack, Digva falsely told the police that he had been the victim of a racist attack and blamed Nowak; as a result, the dying teenager was handcuffed and soon died. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmud had earlier called the killing 'an act of pure evil'. Nowak's family called the decision 'an important step towards justice', but stressed that 'no sentence will bring Henry back to life', and said that their 'fight for justice is far from over': they will support the independent accelerated review being conducted by Alex Chalk.

What remains unresolved

Taking into account time spent in custody, Digva will not be eligible for consideration for parole earlier than in 24 years and 190 days. His mother, Kiran Kaur, received three years in July for assisting an offender — she removed the knife from the crime scene — and shortly before the hearing abandoned her appeal against her sentence. Digva himself has also filed an application to challenge his murder conviction: the court will decide this issue separately, meaning the case is not finally closed.