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2026 Supreme(Online)(Raj) 10668
HIGH COURT OF RAJASTHAN (JAIPUR BENCH)
Mahendar Kumar Goyal, Bhuwan Goyal, JJ
State of Rajasthan – Appellant
Versus
Narottam – Respondent
D.B. Criminal Appeal No. 173/2001
For the Appellants/Petitioners: Naresh Kumar Gupta, PP
For the Respondents: Pushpendra Dutt Rundla, Manoj Chaudhary
An appellate court will not overturn an acquittal unless the trial court's judgment is demonstrably perverse or fails to consider material evidence; child witness testimony must be scrutinized for signs of tutoring, and where testimony is found unreliable, it cannot form the basis of a conviction.
Headnote:(A) Indian Penal Code, 1860 - Sections 302, 498A, and 201 - Criminal Appeal - Appeal against Acquittal - Principle of evaluating child witness testimony - Courts must exercise extreme caution to ensure a child witness has not been tutored and possesses the capacity to understand and respond to questions during examination - Evidence of a child witness as to the cause of death was inconsistent and unreliable due to reported tutoring and inability to comprehend questions - (Paras 14-16)
(B) Appellate Jurisdiction - Appeal against acquittal under Section 378 of Cr.P.C. - Appellate court should only interfere if the trial court's judgment is perverse, misreads evidence, or if no two reasonable views are possible - Mere possibility of another view is insufficient for reversing an acquittal - (Paras 18-19)
Facts of the case:
The State filed an appeal against the trial court's acquittal of the respondents for offenses involving the death of the wife of the first respondent. The prosecution alleged dowry demands and physical torture, supported by the testimony of the deceased's parents and the child of the deceased. The trial court extended the benefit of doubt to the respondents.
Findings of Court:
The testimony of the child witness was found to be unreliable and potentially tutored. Evidence regarding dowry demands was inconsistent, and no supporting medical evidence existed for the alleged physical abuse prior to death. The appellate court found no legal or factual error in the trial court's order.
Issues: Whether the trial court’s acquittal was perverse and whether the testimony of the child witness was sufficient to prove the guilt of the accused.
Ratio Decidendi: An appellate court will not interfere with an acquittal unless the judgment is demonstrably perverse or ignores material evidence. The testimony of a child witness must be scrutinized for signs of tutoring; where a child witness fails to demonstrate credibility or understanding in examination, their testimony cannot sustain a conviction.
Result: Appeal dismissed.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. overview of charges and trial court proceedings regarding the acquittal of the respondents. (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7) |
| 2. summary of rival contentions regarding witness credibility and evidence sufficiency. (Para 8 , 9 , 10) |
| 3. evaluation of child witness reliability and the principles governing appellate interference in acquittal. (Para 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18) |
| 4. final confirmation of acquittal based on a lack of perversity in trial court findings. (Para 19 , 20 , 21) |
Judgment
(PER HON'BLE BHUWAN GOYAL, J.)
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