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SANJAY KUMAR MEDHI, MITALI THAKURIA
Kumru Bhumij Tinsukia, Assam – Appellant
Versus
State Of Assam – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
(S.K.Medhi, J)
The instant appeal has been preferred from jail against a judgment dated 17.02.2020 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge-2 (FTC), Tinsukia in Sessions Case No. 52(T)/18 convicting the appellant and sentencing him to undergo with Life Imprisonment u/s 302 IPC and a fine of Rs.5,000/-(Rupees Five Thousand only), in default the accused shall have to undergo another rigorous imprisonment for 1 (one) year.
2. The criminal law was set into motion by lodging of an FIR on 18.02.2018 by one Ashok Chik (PW2), who is the brother of the deceased Sankar Chik. In the said FIR, the informant did not name anybody as accused and the allegation was that some unknown miscreant had left his younger brother near the Kali Mandir after killing him. On the basis of the FIR, the investigation was done whereafter the charge sheet was submitted. On framing of the charges and denial thereof, the formal trial had begun in which 15 numbers of prosecution witnesses were examined and certain documents were also exhibited including the sketch map. Apart from the statements made before the police under Section 161 of the Cr.P.C., the statements of 3 nos. of witnesses were also recorded under Se
The court ruled that both the 'last seen together' theory and extra-judicial confessions require corroboration and cannot independently sustain a conviction.
In criminal cases based on circumstantial evidence, the prosecution must establish a complete and unbroken chain of evidence to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Circumstantial evidence must be conclusive, with no gaps in the chain, to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt, as per Indian law.
It is a settled legal proposition that conviction of a person accused of committing an offence, is generally based solely on evidence that is either oral or documentary, but in exceptional circumstan....
The benefit of doubt must go in favor of the accused when the prosecution fails to establish the charge beyond reasonable doubt.
Circumstantial evidence must form a complete chain pointing to guilt, and extrajudicial confessions require corroboration to be credible.
(1) Murder and disappearance of evidence – Application of theory of ‘last seen’ in absence of any other positive evidence to conclude that accused and deceased were last seen together would be hazard....
The prosecution must prove the guilt of the accused beyond all reasonable doubt, especially in cases relying on circumstantial evidence.
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