* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI Reserved on: 10^th March, 2026 Pronounced on: 8^th April, 2026 Uploaded on: 8^th April , 2026 + CRL.A. 48/2025 & CRL.M.A. 30839/2025, CRL.M.(BAIL)

88/2025 SANJAY .....Appellant Through: Mr. B. Badrinath, DHCLSC with Mr.

Dhruv Bhardwaj, Advs.

versus STATE GOVT. OF NCT OF DELHI .....Respondent Through: Mr. Ritesh Kumar Bahri, APP with Ms. Divya Yadav and Mr. Lalit Luthra, Advs.

Mr. Rajat Manchanda, Ms. Megha Gaur, Mr. Mayank Nautiyal, Advs.

for complainant.

WITH + CRL.A. 65/2025 & CRL.M.(BAIL) 115/2025 PRADEEP .....Appellant Through: Mr. Praveen Kumar, Mr. Manoj Kumar, Mr. Satvik Mishra, Advs.

versus THE STATE .....Respondent Through: Mr. Ritesh Kumar Bahri, APP with Ms. Divya Yadav and Mr. Lalit Luthra, Advs.

CORAM:

JUSTICE PRATHIBA M. SINGH JUSTICE MADHU JAIN

JUDGMENT

MADHU JAIN, J.

1. The present appeals have been preferred under Section 415 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (hereinafter, ‘BNSS’) assailing the impugned judgment of conviction and order on sentence dated 18^th May, 2024 and 16^th October, 2024 respectively passed by the ld. ASJ (FTC-02), South East, Saket Court, Delhi whereby the Appellants have been convicted in Sessions Case No. 1296/2016 arising out of FIR No. 255/2012 registered at P.S. Pul Prahlad Pur, New Delhi, under Section 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter ‘IPC’), holding as under:

“201. To sum up, in view of above discussion, the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt the charge under section 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code against the accused persons, Pradeep and Sanjay @ Kalia, so the accused persons, Pradeep and Sanjay @ Kalia are found guilty of having committed the said offence and hence, they are convicted of offence punishable under sections 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.”

2. By the impugned judgment of conviction and order on sentence, the Appellants have been sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment for the commission of offences punishable under Section 302 read with Section 34 of the IPC, along with fine of Rs. 70,000/- . Out of the fine, a sum of Rs. 7,500/- shall be paid to the Prosecution/Respondent for the expenses incurred by the State and a sum of Rs.30,000/- shall be given to the family of the deceased, as part compensation. In default of payment of fine, the Appellants shall undergo simple imprisonment for a period of 6 months.

Factual Matrix

3. On 29^th August 2012, P.S. Pul Prahlad Pur, New Delhi at about 10:53 A.M., received an information vide DD No. 6A regarding a boy having been stabbed at the petrol pump, Lal Kuan and that he was serious. The said information was entrusted to Sub-Inspector Sunil Kumar, who along with Constable Bhojpal reached the place of occurrence. Inspector Dharam Dev, the officer-in-charge of the police station, also arrived at the spot along with other police staff. At the spot, bloodstains were present on the cemented tiles at two places and the injured person, Neeraj (the deceased) had already been removed to the hospital by a PCR van. Upon inquiry, one boy Rajesh (PW- 1) (hereinafter ‘Complainant’), who was present there, produced himself as an eyewitness and his statement was recorded.

4. According to the police report, i.e., inter-alia, as stated by the Complainant/Rajesh that he lived at 14, T-Huts, Kalka Stone, Lal Kuan, M.B. Road, New Delhi and was in a private job in Municipal Corporation of Delhi, and he stayed home due to non- availability of work. On 29^th August 2012, at about 10:30 A.M., he along with his friends Neeraj, Paua and Shahrukh were smoking cigarettes sitting on the wall of the bus stand Prem Nagar, Lal Kuan. At that time, the Appellant/Pradeep (hereinafter ‘Pradeep’) came there and demanded a cigarette from him. Upon the Complainant’s refusal, Pradeep pushed him, whereupon the Complainant came down from the wall and pushed Pradeep back, leading to an altercation between Pradeep, deceased Neeraj and the Complainant. Thereupon, Pradeep said “I will be back to teach