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B. R. GAVAI, ARAVIND KUMAR, K. V. VISWANATHAN
Sambhubhai Raisangbhai Padhiyar – Appellant
Versus
State of Gujarat – Respondent
JUDGMENT
K.V. Viswanathan, J.
Criminal Appeal Nos. of 2024 (@ Special Leave Petition (Crl.) Nos. 9015-9016 of 2019)
Leave granted.
2. Wednesday, 13th April 2016 dawned normally for the family of Pravingiri Gosai (PW-9), a farmer, who also alternated as the temple priest at Piludara village under the Vedaj Police Station, Bharuch District in the State of Gujarat. However, by dusk the situation had turned macabre for them, when their four-year old child was found murdered in the village outskirts.
3. The appellant herein stood trial for the offences of kidnapping, sexual assault and murder of the said child and was convicted and sentenced to death by the Trial Court. The High Court of Gujarat at Ahmedabad, by the judgment dated 03.04.2019 in R/Criminal Confirmation Case No. 2 of 2018 with R/Criminal Appeal No. 1207 of 2018, confirmed the conviction and sentence of death imposed on him for the offences punishable under Sections 302, 364, and 377 of the Indian Penal Code (for short ‘IPC’) and Sections 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual offences Act, 2012 (for short ‘POCSO Act’). The appellant is before us in appeal by way of special leave.
Brief Facts:
4. Pravingiri Gosai (PW
(1) Kidnapping and murder of child – Death sentence – Circumstantial evidence – If accused is last seen with deceased and particularly in a case of this nature when time gap between last seen stage a....
Court emphasized the application of circumstantial evidence principles where all links confirmed the appellant's guilt in the kidnapping, sexual assault, and murder of a minor, upholding a death sent....
Circumstantial evidence must establish a conclusive chain consistent with the accused's guilt; suspicion cannot replace proof beyond reasonable doubt in criminal convictions.
Circumstantial evidence, particularly the 'last seen' principle, can suffice for conviction in rape and murder cases yet demands rigorous scrutiny for reliability.
(1) Evidence is only to be weighed and not to be counted – It is essentially, for prosecution to decide as to how many witnesses are to be examined to establish its case on any particular point.(2) D....
The judgment establishes that circumstantial evidence must form a complete, unbroken chain directly linking the accused to the crime, which warranted a life sentence in this case.
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