The appellate court must respect the presumption of innocence and the trial court's findings unless they are perverse or illegal, reaffirming the high burden of proof required in criminal cases.

JUDGMENT :

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 Sessions Judge, Fast Track Court, Deesa Camp at Deodar (hereinafter referred to as “the learned Trial Court”) in Special Case No. 142/2009 on 22.12.2010, whereby, the learned Trial Court has acquitted the respondents for the offence punishable under Sections 323, 504, 506(2) and 114 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 On 28.09.2008, the complainant - Narsinhbhai Vahjibhai Parmar (Chamar) was at his home at around 07.30 pm and at that time, the accused came in their jeep and parked the jeep on the road and came to his house and hurled caste slurs on the complainant and told him to come out of the house and said what had he gained by filing a complaint against them and the accused no. 1 and Dashrat Lagha kicked the complainant and caught him and tried to drag him towards the jeep and threatened to kill him. That at that time, the complainant shouted and Malabhai Tejabhai Mir of his village and his wife came running and got him released from the hold of the accused. All the accused thereafter, went away hurling caste abuses on the complainant and told him that today he was saved and abused him and went away. The complainant told his brother - Jivabhai about the incident and took his brother and went and filed the complaint at the Bhabhar Police Station which was registered at II – C.R. No. 3105/2008 on 28.09.2008 under Sections 323, 504, 506(2) and 114 of 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 learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Deodar and as the said offences against the accused were exclusively triable by the Court of Sessions, the case was committed to the Sessions Court, Banaskantha at Deodar as per the provisions of Section 209 of Code of Criminal Procedure and the case was registered as Special Case No. 142/2009.

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. 3 was framed against the accused and the statement of the accused were recorded at Exhs. 4, 5 and 6, wherein, all 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 the learned APP filed the closing pursis at Exh.38, the further statement of the accused under Section 313 of the C