Criminal Law - Murder – Ocular Testimony vs. Medical Evidence – Appeals Dismissed – Sessions Judge acquitted accused of strangulating deceased; High Court reversed and convicted under Section 302/34 IPC – Supreme Court upheld conviction – Eyewitness testimony of police constables on patrol duty fully corroborated by medical and documentary evidence – No inconsis...
Murder – Circumstantial Evidence – Acquittal Ordered – Prosecution case rested on circumstantial evidence of accused hiring taxi, staying at hotel, recovery of ornaments, and letter allegedly written by accused – Hotel waiter, the sole direct witness, not examined – Register entries not legally proved – Recovery of common ornaments not connected to deceased &nda...
Criminal Law - Criminal Conspiracy – Circumstantial Proof – IPC Ss.120-A, 120-B – Agreement sufficient – Conspiracy can be inferred from conduct and surrounding circumstances – Secrecy and routing of MUL funds through BRs and pay orders while masking them as MUL-UCO transactions established concert between A-1, A-3 and A-5 – Held: conspiracy proved, though A-2 n...
Maintenance – Proof of Marriage – Decree Reversed – Plaintiff filed suit for maintenance claiming to be legally wedded wife of defendant – Defendant denied marriage altogether – Trial Court relied solely on oral testimony of P.W.3 (defendant’s brother-in-law) and decreed maintenance – Appellate Court found no documentary proof of marriage, no evidence of c...
Criminal Law - Murder – Circumstantial Evidence – Murder and Robbery – Sections 302, 392 r/w 397 IPC – Conviction and death sentence upheld – Prosecution relied on motive, recovery of jewellery, cash, fingerprints, and presence near crime scene – Recovery of ornaments at appellant’s instance and pledge of stolen jewellery shortly after incident established...
SC/ST Act – Cognizance – Caste-based Abuse – Public View – Appellants challenged cognizance order under Sections 3(1)(r)(s)(w)/3(2)(va) of SC/ST Act – Alleged that caste-based remarks were made inside house and not in public view – Trial court relied on FIR, injury report, restatement of informant and witness statements indicating villagers assembled after heari...
Criminal Law – Murder – Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC – Conviction upheld – Eyewitness Rajesh (PW5) testified that Sunil caught hold of the deceased while co-accused Dharamvir inflicted knife blows – Testimony clear, cogent and trustworthy – Minor omissions or elaborations in deposition do not discredit prosecution case – Section 34 IPC attracted &n...
Criminal Law – Economic Offences – Anticipatory Bail – Alleged Ponzi Scheme – Sections 406, 409, 420 IPC and MPID Act – Applicant accused of being part of financial fraud involving over ₹1.13 crore collected through investment scheme – Co-accused (husband and wife, main operators of company) already granted anticipatory bail – Entire amount deposited bef...
NDPS Act – Second Bail Application – Commercial Quantity – Allegation of conscious possession – 151.6 kg of ganja recovered from intercepted DCM truck – Applicant apprehended on spot along with driver – Held: Once contraband is recovered from vehicle and accused was present therein, presumption of conscious possession applies – Burden on accused under Sect...
Criminal Law – Bail – Section 152 BNS – Social Media Post – Allegation of 'Pakistan Zindabad' post by applicant under a foreign national’s post – No material to show active promotion of secession or armed rebellion – Held: Section 152 BNS requires intentional incitement of secession or subversive activity – Mere expression of sentiment, even ...