The appellate court must respect the presumption of innocence and not interfere with an acquittal unless the trial court's decision is perverse or illegal.

JUDGMENT :

S.V. PINTO, J.

1. The present present appeal is filed by the appellant State under Section 378(1)(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 against the judgement and order of acquittal passed by the learned 3^rd Additional District and Sessions Judge, Surat (hereinafter referred to as “the learned Trial Court”) in Special Atrocity Case No. 16/2007 on 01.06.2009, whereby, the learned Trial Court has acquitted the respondents for the offence punishable under Sections 143, 147, 148, 149, 323, 325, 504 and 337 of IPC and Sections 3(1)(10) of Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as “the Atrocities Act”).

1.1 The respondents are hereinafter referred to as “the accused” as they stood in the original case for the sake of convenience, clarity and brevity.

2. The brief facts that emerge from the record of the case are as under:

2.1 The complainant - Jitubhai Dahyabhai Rathod has filed the complaint on 17.03.2007 stating that Deepakbhai Pravinchandra Vyas has a lease for sand mining next to his lease and on 17.03.2007, while he was at his lease along with Nanubhai Magjibhai Dodiya Patel, Kamabhai Delad, Punabhai and Bikhubhai; Deepakbhai Vyas and his men including Chandubhai Govindbhai Odh and Gopalbhai Dodiyabhai came and abused him and used caste slurs. That they threw stones and Deepakbhai Vyas had a stick in his hand and he gave three blows with the stick to him out of which one blow was on the head and two blows were on the hands. That they assaulted the other men with fists and also assaulted Nanubhai with a stick and broke his left hand and abused all of them. At that time, persons working at the place of Dhirubhai Dahyabhai Rathod came and saved them and they were taken for treatment to the Government Hospital at Kamrej. The complainant filed the complaint at Kamrej Police Station which was registered at I - C.R. No. 64/2007 under Sections 143, 147, 148, 149, 323, 325, 337 and 504 of the IPC and Section 3(1)(10) of the Atrocities Act.

2.2 The Investigating Officer recorded the statements of the connected witnesses and seized the necessary documents and after completion of investigation, a charge- sheet came to be filed before the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat and as the said offences against the accused were exclusively triable by the Court of Sessions, the case was committed to the Sessions Court, Surat as per the provisions of Section 209 of Code of Criminal Procedure and the case was registered as Special Atrocity Case No.16/2007.

2.3 The accused was duly served with the summons and the accused appeared before the learned Trial Court and it was verified whether the copies of all the police papers were provided to the accused as per the provisions of Section 207 of the Code and a charge at Exh. 10 was framed against the accused and the statements of the accused were recorded at Exhs. 11 and 12 respectively, wherein, both the accused denied the contents of the charge and the entire evidence of the prosecution was taken on record.

2.4 The prosecution produced the following evidence to bring home the charge against the accused.

ORAL EVIDENCE

DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE

2.5 After th