Criminal Law – Appeal Against Acquittal – Section 378 of Cr.P.C. – Appeal by the State challenging acquittal by the trial court. The trial court acquitted the accused for offences under Sections 323, 504 read with Section 114 of IPC, Section 3(1)(x) of the Atrocities Act, and Section 135 of the Bombay Police Act. The High Court upheld the trial court’s judgment, finding no ...
Criminal Law - Scope of Magistrate’s Powers Under Section 156(3) Cr.P.C. - Petition filed under Article 227 challenging the order of the Magistrate directing a preliminary investigation by police. The petitioner argued that the Magistrate misinterpreted the law laid down by the Supreme Court in Priyanka Srivastava v. State of U.P. (2015) and Lalita Kumari v. Government of U.P. (2014). The co...
Criminal Law – Conviction based on Circumstantial Evidence – Acquittal – Criminal Appeal against conviction under Section 302, IPC – Sessions Court convicted accused for murder of his wife – Prosecution witnesses turned hostile – Prosecution failed to establish motive or conclusively link the accused to the crime – Lack of direct evidence – Held that...
Criminal Procedure – Quashing of Proceedings – Section 482 Cr.P.C. – Application to quash charge sheet, cognizance order, and entire proceedings under IPC and SC/ST Act – Applicants argued delay in FIR filing and lack of proper investigation – Court held prima facie case exists based on charge sheet and cognizance order – No grounds for quashing established &nda...
Will – Proof and Validity – The petitioner sought to have his name mutated in the revenue records based on a Will executed by Phagulal Patel in favor of Dharmendra Sonkar. The Court emphasized that for a Will to be acted upon, it must be duly proved in accordance with the law. The petitioner failed to provide evidence proving the genuineness and validity of the Will. The Court highligh...
Criminal Law – Conviction under NDPS Act – Appeal against trial court's judgment convicting appellant for possession of 7 kg of 'charas' later identified as 'opium' – Alleged procedural lapses in compliance with mandatory provisions of Sections 50 and 52A NDPS Act – Safe custody of seized contraband not established – Discrepancies in forensic exami...
Criminal Law – Acquittal under Sections 395 and 397 IPC and Section 135 of the Bombay Police Act upheld by the High Court - Burden of Proof and Standard of Evidence – The appeal challenged the acquittal of respondents accused of robbery and causing hurt with deadly weapons. The prosecution relied heavily on a test identification parade (TIP) conducted eight months post-incident and the...
Criminal Law – Right of Private Defence – Criminal Appeal against conviction under Section 302 IPC and Section 30 of the Arms Act – Appeal allowed on grounds of reasonable apprehension of death – Incident occurred during a panchayat meeting to resolve familial disputes – Deceased son-in-law allegedly pointed a firearm at the appellant, leading the appellant’s sh...
Criminal Law – Zimma of Seized Cattle – Revision petition against order refusing zimma – Seizure made under Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021 – Magistrate refused zimma on grounds of necessity for further investigation – Petitioner argued cattle were legally purchased, presented purchase receipt to Investigating Officer (I.O.) – Court held provisions of Chapte...
Counterfeit Currency – Acquittal Appeal – State appealed against the acquittal of accused charged with possession and trafficking of counterfeit currency under IPC Sections 489(A), (B), (C), and (D) – High Court upheld the trial court's judgment acquitting the accused – Emphasized the requirement of mens rea and the prosecution's failure to establish knowledge of co...