Criminal Liability – Common Intention – Section 34 IPC – Applicability Justified – The appellants were convicted under Sections 323, 325, and 326 read with Section 34 IPC for inflicting injuries resulting in the death of the deceased – The Supreme Court upheld the application of Section 34, holding that common intention can be inferred from the facts and surrounding c...
NDPS Act – Commercial Quantity – Section 21(c) – Conviction Confirmed – The appellant was found in possession of 920 grams of black liquid containing 2.8% morphine – Held: Substance qualifies as “opium derivative” and therefore a “manufactured drug” under Section 2 – Quantity exceeded 250 grams, the threshold for “commercial quantit...
Criminal Contempt of Court – Scandalising the Judiciary – News Report based on Speech – Gross Contempt Made Out – Rajendra Sail in a public rally termed the High Court judgment acquitting accused in Niyogi murder case as “rubbish,” alleged bias, corruption and lack of honesty of judges, and questioned assignment of cases to retiring judges – Held: Statemen...
Criminal Law – Sentencing – Sections 307, 333 IPC – Undue Leniency by High Court – Order reducing sentence to period undergone set aside – Trial court convicted one accused under Sections 307 & 330 IPC and the other under Sections 307/34 & 333/34 IPC for assault on a constable with sharp weapon on a railway platform – High Court reduced sentence to about...
Criminal Law - Murder – Section 302, 34 IPC – Circumstantial Evidence and Last-Seen Theory – Conviction Set Aside – The appellant was convicted for murder based on being last seen with the deceased and an extra-judicial confession – Held: Last-seen circumstance without a complete chain of evidence cannot justify conviction, particularly with time-gap between deceased ...
Murder – Sections 302 & 34 IPC – Eyewitness testimony and medical corroboration – Conviction Altered to 302/34 – Prosecution case supported by consistent eyewitnesses (PWs 2 & 3) and postmortem showing multiple incised wounds consistent with kirpan blows – Defence plea of false implication rejected in view of admitted presence and superficial nature of accused...
Negotiable Instruments Act – Section 138 – Ingredients – Dishonour of Cheque – Cheque dishonoured with remark “reported lost by drawer” – No allegation of insufficiency of funds – Complainant issued statutory notice and filed complaint – Appellant sought quashing under Section 482 CrPC – Held: Penal liability under Section 138 arises only...
Criminal Procedure – Section 167(2) CrPC – Default Bail – Cognizance under TOHO – Appellants arrested in connection with organ transplant racket – CBI filed complaint under Section 22 of the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994 – Appellants claimed entitlement to statutory bail as no chargesheet (police report) was filed within 90 days – Held: CBI, th...
Criminal Law - Section 302, 120B, 294, 307, 323, 34, 341, 353, 370, 380, 394, 397, 457, 506B of the IPC - Murder of Trade Union Leader – Circumstantial Evidence Against Industrialists Inadequate – Acquittal Upheld – Deceased, a labour rights leader, was allegedly murdered by conspiracy among local industrialists and hired killers – Trial court convicted A-1 to A-5 and A-9 b...
Murder – Sudden Fight – Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC – Not Applicable – The appellants argued that the killing occurred in a sudden quarrel without premeditation and hence fell under Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC – Held: Though the quarrel was sudden and without pre-planning, the appellants acted in a cruel and unusual manner by firing at unarmed victims with firea...