Shivani Gadhavi
Published On: February 09, 2022 at 16:40 IST
The Bombay High Court on February 2, 2022 passed an Order of Acquittal for 20 accused persons in a 2014 case related to Murder and Rioting. The High Court observed that the testimonies given by witnesses are starkly identical which cannot be possible.
The Bombay High Court Bench of Justices S B Shukre and P V Ganediwala was hearing a Petition of the 20 Accused who were challenging their Conviction order given by an Additional Sessions Judge in 2018.
The case pertains to an incident of Rioting and Murder during the festival of Holi in 2014, wherein the Appellants had allegedly assaulted four men out of whom one died due to severe injuries. A First Information Report (FIR) was filed pertaining to which 23 persons were arrested by the Police.
The Accused were charged for Offences punishable under Sections 302 (Punishment for murder), 147 (Punishment for rioting), 307 (Attempt to Murder), 148 (Rioting armed with deadly weapon) and 149 (Member of unlawful assembly guilty of common offence committed) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act of 1951.
In this regard, the Additional Sessions Judge, Mangrulpir convicted 20 accused and acquitted 2. The remaining one person was not tried for the virtue of being a Juvenile. The 20 accused challenged the conviction order of the Sessions Judge.
In the present case, the High Court Bench observed that, “Six eye-witnesses deposed the occurrence of the incident in identical fashion with each and every minute detail, which in our considered opinion, is humanly impossible.”
The Division Bench furthermore added that, “It is like victims were not defending themselves but observing as to who is assaulting whom and with which weapon and the organ of the body. …Had it been a case of one witness deposing with such minute details, it may have been believed presuming his extra-ordinary capacity of observing the things and recollecting the same. But here is the case of six witnesses including the injured witnesses.”
The Bench while allowing the plea of the Appellants stated that, “In the result, we find that the Prosecution has failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.” and added that, “The appellants are acquitted of the offences charged with.”
Also read: Indian Penal Code Amendment Bill, 2020
