Court emphasized the importance of grave suspicion in determining sufficient grounds for framing charges, overruling the discharge of the accused in light of strong evidentiary support.

Judgment :

Pranjal Das, J.

1. Heard Mr. L. Kurdu, learned Special Public Prosecutor (SIT) for the petitioner/State. Also heard Ms. N. Danggen, learned Amicus Curiae for the respondents.

2. With regard to the alleged rape and murder of a 5 and ½ years old girl, Tezu P.S. Case No. 22/2018 was registered under section 302/376 IPC read with section 6 of the POCSO Act and on 18/02/2018, two alleged accused persons in the said case namely, Sanjay Sobor and Jagdish Lohar were arrested and kept at the lockup of Tezu police station after obtaining police remand from court. That, on 19/02/2018 at around 12 p.m., a huge crowd of about thousand people armed with iron rods, pipes, hammers, wooden sticks surrounded the Tezu police station, overpowered the police officers and after going inside the police station took out the said two accused persons and lynched them to death. That, the crowd also damaged properties of the police station such as DVRs, tables, gates, locks etc. The incident also caused injuries to some police personnel on duty.

3. The mob even dragged the dead bodies of the two accused UTPs to the town square and burnt the dead bodies. With regard to this incident of mob violence and lynching, Tezu police station Case No. 22 of 2018 was registered under section 120(B)/147/148/149/452/353/448/302 IPC read with section 3 of the PDPP ACT . Investigation was conducted initially by the local police and later by the SIT police headquarters, Itanagar which was entrusted with the investigation vide order dated 03.03.2018.

4. The names of the six respondents herein came up as being involved in the crime during investigation from the statements of eyewitnesses and other relevant materials. After completion of investigation, charge sheet was laid against all these six accused- respondents under section 120(B)/147/148/149/452/ 353/186/448/201/302 IPC read with section 3 of the PDPP ACT . The case proceeded to the stage of consideration of charge during which the respondents filed an application for discharge under section 227 CrPC (as it existed then).

5. After considering the materials and hearing the parties, the learned trial court, being the Court of the learned Sessions Judge Tezu, in Sessions Case No. 3(L)/2022 was pleased to frame charges under section 147/148/149/448 IPC read with section 3 of the PDPP ACT . Thus, this meant that vide order dated 13-05-2022, the learned trial court was pleased to discharge the respondents of charges under section 120(B)/452/353/302 . The prosecution/State was aggrieved by the dropping of charges under the aforesaid sections and has taken the grievance to this court by way of this criminal petition.

6. In support of its contentions, the learned Special Public Prosecutor submits that the materials on record clearly proved that the six accused persons were the mastermind behind the incident; that, prior to the incident of mob violence and lynching, there was a meeting organized in the Circuit House of Tezu and the respondents were present therein, which has been proved by the statements of one of the caretakers of the circuit house and that such statement has been recorded by police as well as before learned JMFC. It is submitted that the evidence on record clearly showed that the respondents were part of the mob which attacked the police station and apart from destroying properties therein, dragged out the accused UTPs and lynched them.

7. It is submitted that there are statements of witnesses which have indicated the presence of the respondents as part of that c