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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
SANJIV KHANNA AND R.K. GAUBA, JJ.
KISHAN TRIPATHI @ KISHAN PAINTER - Appellant
Versus
THE STATE – Respondent
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 108/2013
Decided On :12-02-2016
CCTV Footage - Murder Conviction - Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) - Section 302
Fact of the Case:
The appellant, Kishan Tripathi, was convicted for the murder of Sachidanand Jha based on electronic evidence in the form of CCTV footage. The victim's body was found in a factory, and the CCTV footage showed the appellant dragging, assaulting, and ultimately killing the victim.
Finding of the Court:
The court found the appellant guilty based on the CCTV footage, witness testimonies, and forensic evidence. The court rejected the appellant's defense and upheld the conviction and sentence for murder.
Issues: The key issues revolved around the authenticity and admissibility of the CCTV footage, the identification of the appellant as the perpetrator, and the reliability of the forensic evidence.
Ratio Decidendi: The primary and core evidence in the case was the CCTV footage, which the court found to be genuine and reliable. The court also emphasized the direct and compelling nature of the video recording as a form of primary evidence.
Final Decision: The court upheld the conviction and sentence of the appellant for the murder of Sachidanand Jha, dismissing the appeal.
Key Points: - The CCTV footage is considered primary evidence and capable of being relied upon to identify the perpetrator, Kishan Tripathi (identity established via CCTV and corroborated by witnesses). (!) (!) (!) (!) - The court held that the CCTV footage is genuine, authentic, and not interpolated or tampered with, fulfilling system and record integrity tests, and functions as direct evidence, not requiring 65B certification when used as primary evidence under Section 62 of the Evidence Act. [11000494320015][11000494320013][11000494320012] - The trial court’s conviction for murder under Section 302 IPC is upheld based on CCTV footage, witness testimonies, and forensic evidence; appeal dismissed. [11000494320023] - The prosecution’s reliance on the CCTV footage is supported by testimonies of PW-4 (Rakesh Bhargava), PW-7 (HC Rajpal Singh), PW-15 (Ram Milan), and PW-18 (Inspector B.S. Rana) confirming the footage and its interpretation. (!) (!) (!) (!) - The court reproduced snapshots from the CCTV evidence to establish the identity of the appellant and his actions in the timeline of the crime. (!) [11000494320016][11000494320017] - Forensic evidence (knife, T-iron rod, blood on items) is corroborative but not the core evidence; CCTV footage remains primary evidence. [11000494320020][11000494320010] - The appellant’s defense and alleged detentions do not undermine the authenticity or integrity of the CCTV evidence. (!) [11000494320022]
SANJIV KHANNA, J.
1. Kishan Tripathi, also known as Kishan painter because of his profession, by the present appeal, questions judgment dated 4th October, 2012, convicting him for murder of Sachidanand Jha in the intervening night between 22nd and 23rd February, 2009.By order on sentence dated 17th October, 2012, Kishan Tripathi has been sentenced to imprisonment for life, fine of Rs.75,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to undergo Simple Imprisonment for a period of two years for the offence under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC, for short).
2. Conviction of Kishan Tripathi is primarily predicated on the electronic evidence in form of CCTV footage, and therefore we had played the original footage captured and recorded on the hard disk in the court. Before, we elucidate and refer to this percipient and definitive evidence, we would like to refer to the facts in brief.
3. It has been proved beyond doubt and debate from the testimony of Rakesh Bhargava (PW-4), owner of the factory, located at C-59, Okhla Industrial Area-I, New Delhi that Sachidanand Jha was posted as a night duty guard from 8 P.M. to 8 A.M.in the intervening night between 22nd and 23rd February, 2009.22nd February, 2009, being a Sunday was weekly off day for the workers. 23rd February, 2009 was Maha Shivaratri and therefore, the factory was again closed.In the morning hours of 23rd February, 2009 at about 9 or 9.30 A.M., Rakesh Bhargava (PW-4) had received a call from the workers in his factory that a dead body of a security guard was lying in the factory.PW-4 immediately informed the police on No. 100 from his residence. Dead body of Sachidanand Jha, whom he identified, was lying in the basement. The body had been covered with a compressor. Blood would be seen near the gate leading to the office. Office glass was broken and someone had entered the office and opened the locker.Rs.7,500/- and some documents had been stolen from the locker.
4. Discovery of the dead body of Sachidanand Jha in the early morning hours at about 9.30-10 A.M. on 23rd February, 2009 is also proved and established from the testimonies of Jawahar Singh (PW-3), who was the duty officer at Police Station Okhla Industrial Area and had received a message from the wireless operator regarding murder in the factory at C-59, Okhla Industrial Area-I at about 9.50 A.M. and had recorded DD No. 4A (Exhibit PW-3/C), which was marked to ASI Sakhi Ram (PW-20) through Constable Pawan Kumar. Jawahar Singh (PW-3) had subsequently registered FIR No. 71/2009, under Sections 302/201/460 IPC and made an endorsement Exhibit PW-3/A on the rukka.The original rukka and the computerized copy was marked Exhibit PW-3/B.Head Constable Rajpal Singh (PW-7) had joined investigation by visiting C-59, Okhla Industrial Area-I, where ASI Sakhi Ram (PW-20) and Rakesh Bhargava (PW-4) were already present. He affirms having noticed blood on the stairs leading towards the basement and on the first floor. In the basement, dead body of a male with papers and an air compressor machine on top, was lying.PW-7 has deposed that the locker (tijori) had been broken. Head Constable Ram Chander (PW-16) testified that on DD No. 4A being marked, he along with ASI Sakhi Ram (PW-20) had reached C-59, Okhla Industrial Area-I and had met Rakesh Bhargava (PW-4).He had seen blood in substantial quantity on the stairs going from ground floor towards the basement giving an impression that the body had been dragged. Loose papers were found lying near the narrow passage in the basement. The deceased was a security guard named Sachidanand Jha and a compressor machine had been put on him. A small chest (tijori) in the premises was found to be damaged. The FIR was registered. Inspector B.S. Rana (PW-18)”s testimony is almost identical on aspects like, noticing a dead body in a pool of blood in the basement with a compressor on the top. They had called the crime team with the photographer, who then took pictures from differe
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