‘Emmerdale’ tonight: Will Meena pay for her crimes as the verdict is announced?

There’s a tense time ahead in tonight’s Emmerdale, as twisted villain Meena Jutla (Paige Sandhu) hears her fate in court.

The hour-long instalment of the ITV soap, which airs at 7:30 tonight, will deliver the long-awaited verdict of Meena’s murder trial.

Given the killer’s antics in last night’s episode, as well as the ruthless treatment of Liam Cavanagh (Jonny McPherson) and Manpreet Sharma (Rebecca Sarker) at the hands of the defence, the result really could go either way.

While witness Wendy Posner (Susan Cookson) struggled under questioning, Meena was thrilled to take the stand. She put on the ultimate damsel in distress act, claiming she only killed victim Ben Tucker (Simon Lennon) in self-defence.

Read more: Next week on Emmerdale

Meena added that her calculated actions on the day of Billy and Dawn Fletcher’s (Jay Kontzle and Olivia Bromley) wedding were a blur, due to ‘losing’ the baby she claimed to be either Liam’s or Billy’s.

She also lied that Manpreet had invented her confession, and said that Liam had manipulated her — before suggesting that her victim, Liam's daughter Leanna (Mimi Slinger) had taken her own life.

Liam’s wife Leyla (Roxy Shahidi) couldn’t bear to hear any more of Meena’s poisonous tall tales, resulting in an outburst that got her thrown out of court.

Read more: Meena 'will do anything' warns Emmerdale star Paige Sandhu

As the prosecution and the defence each made their case in court, Meena grinned, utterly convinced she was about to get away with everything.

But is she right to be so sure? As a new day dawns, one person counting on a guilty verdict is Liam, who surely cannot take any more suffering. What will he do if Meena isn’t made to pay for Leanna’s murder?

Read more: Five ways murderous Meena could exit Emmerdale

And after everything she’s been through, Manpreet will be hoping to put an end to this traumatic era of her life once and for all. Will she be able to move on, or has this final chapter of torture all been for nothing?

The rest of the locals are also on tenterhooks as they wait for news. We can’t give away any hints over the outcome, but one thing we can promise is an action-packed episode. Fans of star Sandhu’s dedicated, animated portrayal of Meena will be gripped as she gives yet another powerful performance.

The story isn’t over yet, and the show is squeezing every last drop of drama out of Meena’s presence. What’s next on the agenda for the supervillain?

You’ll have to tune in to Emmerdale at 7:30pm to find out!

Watch the latest Emmerdale spoilers