Anticipatory Bail – Cancellation – High Court granted anticipatory bail ignoring material aspects such as the nature and gravity of the offence and the specific allegations against the accused – Deficiencies in the investigation highlighted by JMFC and trial court, including failure to consider eyewitness statements, reliance on selective CCTV footage, and lack of fingerprint ana...
Penal Code – Gang Rape – Conviction – Conviction under Section 376D IPC questioned – Evidence of the prosecutrix indicates repeated rape by the appellant over four months – No conclusive evidence of common intention or aiding by co-accused to establish gang rape – Conviction under Section 376D IPC modified to Section 376 IPC [Paras 9-12].
Evidentiary Value &n...
Criminal Procedure – Anticipatory Bail – Multiple FIRs – Modification of Bail Conditions – Petitioners, on anticipatory bail in seven FIRs, were ordered by the Trial Court to furnish two sureties each for every FIR – High Court held this requirement highly onerous – Directed that two sureties each for all seven FIRs would suffice – Relied on Supreme Court ...
Juvenile Justice – Bail – Juvenile not named in FIR – Co-accused’s disclosure – Impugned orders rejecting bail lacked reference to social background report – Bail allowed – Held, both impugned orders failed to reference or consider the social background report – Courts below based rejection on surmises and conjectures without fulfilling the statutory...
Criminal Procedure – Quashing of FIR – Reinvestigation – Magistrate’s Authority – Petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. to quash FIR No. 135 dated 13.08.2011 – FIR quashed as Magistrate could not reject cancellation report repeatedly on the same grounds and order reinvestigation – Emphasized that if Magistrate disagreed with the closure report, he should take...
Constitutional Law – Protection of Life and Liberty – Live-in Relationship – Article 226 of the Constitution of India – Petitioners, adults in a live-in relationship, sought protection from threats posed by disapproving relatives – One petitioner was still legally married to another individual, complicating their situation – Court held that the protection of lif...
Quashing of FIR and Conviction – Valid Compromise – Section 482 Cr.P.C. – Held, the High Court has the power to quash an FIR and set aside a conviction on the basis of a valid compromise between the parties – This is permissible even if the offences are non-compoundable and the trial has concluded – Compromise must be genuine, voluntary, and without coercion [Paras 16...
Illegal Possession of Sandalwood Oil – Presumption of Culpability – The Supreme Court held that the Kerala Forest Act's presumption of culpability under Section 27 requires the prosecution to prove that the accused knowingly possessed forest produce illicitly removed from a reserved forest. The High Court erred in holding that mere possession automatically implies culpable mental s...
Confiscation of Hypothecated Vehicle – Section 63 NDPS Act – Proviso Interpretation – Held, under the proviso to Section 63(2) of the NDPS Act, no order of confiscation shall be made without giving the financier an opportunity of hearing – The Special Court's order confiscating the vehicle without hearing the petitioner is set aside – The case is remanded for fres...
Abetment of Suicide – Section 306 IPC – Mens Rea and Instigation – The Supreme Court held that a teacher reprimanding a student for indiscipline, which is part of the teacher’s duty, does not constitute abetment of suicide unless there is clear mens rea to instigate the suicide. In this case, the appellant acted within his duties without any intention to provoke the student...