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THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
ASHUTOSH KUMAR, ARUN DEV CHOUDHURY
State of Assam Represented By PP, Assam – Appellant
Versus
Zakir Hussain Nagaon – Respondent
JUDGMENT & ORDER (CAV)
(A.D.Choudhury, J)
1. The Death Sentence Ref. No. 02/2018 and Crl. A. No. 336/2018, have been heard together and are being disposed of by this common Judgment and Order.
2. We have heard Mr. A. K. Bhuyan, learned Senior Advocate, assisted by Ms. N.Choudhury, learned Advocate for the appellant in Crl. A. No. 336/2018. and Mr. R. R. Kaushik, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam, for the State. We have also heard Mr. Z. Kamar, Learned Senior Advocate/Amicus Curiae.
3. By the impugned Judgment dated 04.09.2018 and Order of sentence dated 07.09.2018 passed by the learned Special Judge, Nagaon in Special (POCSO) Case No. 23(N)/2018, the accused/appellant was convicted under sections 448, 201, 302 IPC and sentenced RI one year, RI for three years and Death sentence respectively and and sentenced under section 6 of the POCSO ACT and sentenced to RI for Life.
4. The prosecution case, in a nutshell, is that on 23.03.2018, the informant, Md. Sharfat Ali (PW-1) lodged an FIR with the Officer-in-Charge of Batadraba Police Station, alleging that on 23.03.2018 at 1:30 P.M., taking the advantage of absence of their family members in the house, accused/appellant Zakir Hussa
The court ruled that dying declarations cannot solely establish guilt, especially when there are severe doubts about the deceased's capacity to make reliable statements due to critical burn injuries.
A dying declaration can serve as the sole basis for conviction if it is credible and corroborated, emphasizing its legal admissibility in murder cases.
A dying declaration can be the sole basis of conviction if it is found to be true and voluntary, and if the court is satisfied that the statement is reliable and not the result of tutoring, prompting....
(1) Dying declaration while carrying presumption of being true must be wholly reliable and inspire confidence – Where there is any suspicion over veracity of same or evidence on record shows that dyi....
The voluntary and truthful nature of dying declaration and the competency of a child witness to depose are crucial in establishing guilt and determining the appropriate criminal offense.
The court determined that inconsistent dying declarations and lack of corroborating evidence preclude conviction, emphasizing the burden on prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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