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Supreme Court Acquits Accused in Murder Case Due to Unreliable Identification and Lack of Corroboration — Conviction under Section 302 IPC and Section 25 Arms Act Set Aside. The sole eyewitness testimony of the deceased's brother was found unreliable, and the recovery of a weapon was not linked to the crime, leading to acquittal.

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2026-07-14 23:26:26
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Case Details

2025 INSC 1318

Criminal Appeal No. 5641 of 2024

2025-01-01

J.K. Maheshwari

2025 INSC 1318

Govind

State of Haryana

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Nature of Litigation

Criminal appeal against conviction for murder and arms act violation

Remedy Sought

Appellant sought acquittal from conviction under Section 302 IPC and Section 25 Arms Act

Filing Reason

Appellant was convicted by trial court and High Court affirmed; he appealed to Supreme Court challenging the conviction

Previous Decisions

Trial court convicted appellant on 29.08.2018; High Court affirmed on 08.11.2023

Issues

Whether the identification of the appellant by the sole eyewitness is reliable? Whether the recovery of a country-made pistol and cartridges is sufficient to sustain conviction under Section 25 Arms Act? Whether the prosecution has proved its case beyond reasonable doubt?

Submissions/Arguments

Appellant argued that the sole eyewitness was an interested witness and his testimony was unreliable; identification was delayed and not corroborated. Prosecution argued that the eyewitness identified the appellant at the spot and recovery of weapon supports the case.

Ratio Decidendi

The conviction cannot be based solely on the testimony of an interested witness without independent corroboration, especially when the identification is delayed and the witness had no prior acquaintance with the accused. Recovery of weapon without linking it to the crime is insufficient to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

Judgment Excerpts

The sole eyewitness, Pradeep (PW-1), is an interested witness being the brother of the deceased. His testimony suffers from material contradictions and lacks corroboration. The recovery of a country-made pistol and cartridges from the appellant, without any forensic link to the crime, does not inspire confidence. The prosecution has failed to prove the guilt of the appellant beyond reasonable doubt. The appellant is entitled to the benefit of doubt.

Procedural History

FIR No. 206/2016 registered on 12.06.2016 at Police Station Beri, Jhajjar. Trial court (Additional Sessions Judge, Jhajjar) convicted appellant on 29.08.2018 in Sessions Case No. 39/2016. High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh affirmed conviction on 08.11.2023 in CRA-D-913-DB-2018 (O&M). Supreme Court allowed appeal on 01.01.2025.

Acts & Sections

  • Indian Penal Code, 1860: 302
  • Arms Act, 1959: 25
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