Criminal Law – Conspiracy – Joint Trial – Sections 233 to 239 CrPC – High Court held joint trial of accused for multiple offences including conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, and forgery to be illegal – Supreme Court overruled, holding that provisions under Section 239 CrPC are enabling and may be applied cumulatively – Joint trial for offences committed in t...
Criminal Law – Attempt to Murder (Section 307 IPC) – Right of Private Defence – When accused fired two gunshots at complainants during a family dispute, plea of self-defence rejected – Evidence proved that complainants had only come to remonstrate about accused’s conduct – No aggression or provocation by complainants – Held: Plea of private defence unsusta...
Criminal Procedure – Dismissal of Appeal for Default – Power to Rehear – Appellate Court cannot dismiss an appeal for default of appearance of the appellant or counsel – Court must either adjourn the case or decide it on merits after perusing the record – Sessions Judge dismissed the appeal after examining the judgment and record and therefore it was a decision on mer...
Criminal Law – Murder – Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC – Applicability – Appellant convicted for murdering deceased Kaluram by inflicting a knife blow on his chest – defence plea that incident occurred in a sudden fight without premeditation and hence case fell under Exception 4 to Section 300 IPC – Held: Exception 4 applies only when death is caused (a) without...
Constitutional Law – Freedom of Speech – Sedition – Sections 124A & 505 IPC – Validity upheld – Challenge to constitutionality of Sections 124A and 505 IPC on the ground that they violate Article 19(1)(a) – Held: The provisions, when read in light of Article 19(2), are valid – The restrictions imposed are “in the interests of public order” ...
Criminal Law – NDPS Offence – Conscious Possession – Meaning and Scope – Conviction under Section 15 NDPS Act requires proof of conscious possession – Possession implies control with awareness of its nature – Once possession established, burden shifts to accused under Sections 35 and 54 NDPS Act to explain innocence – However, failure to question accused o...
Criminal Law – Conspiracy – Essential Ingredients – Agreement between two or more persons to commit an illegal act or legal act by illegal means is sine qua non – Mere suspicion, knowledge, or discussion not sufficient – Conviction under Section 302 read with 120B IPC cannot be sustained when co-accused were not charged under Section 120B – Offence of conspiracy...
Criminal Law – Evidence – Confession and Recovery – Sections 25, 26, and 27 of the Evidence Act – Scope and Admissibility – Accused, while in police custody, recovered stolen items (a box and a key) without making any direct confession of guilt – Held: Statement relating distinctly to the discovery of the article is admissible under Section 27 – Confession...
Criminal Law – Section 498A IPC – Quashing of Proceedings – Absence of Statutory Ingredients – Held: FIR and charge sheet alleged non-cohabitation and emotional neglect after marriage – No allegation of conduct likely to cause suicide or grave injury – No harassment for unlawful demand made out – Allegations insufficient to constitute cruelty under either ...
NDPS Act – Search and Seizure – Compliance with Mandatory Provisions – Violation of Sections 42(2) and 50(4) – Police officers of Kapurthala conducting raid in Amritsar district without informing local police – Female accused personally searched by male officers – Non-compliance with statutory safeguards renders search illegal and recovery unreliable – Hel...