The Supreme Court dismissed the State of Uttarakhand's appeal in a murder case, affirming the accused's acquittal and ordering an inquiry into allegations of custodial torture, seeking action against officials.
The Supreme Court of India, on January 25, 2025, dismissed a criminal appeal filed by the State of Uttarakhand, affirming the acquittal of an accused in a murder case. The Court took serious note of the allegations that the accused had been subjected to custodial torture, directing the jurisdictional District Magistrate to conduct an inquiry and initiate appropriate legal action against the responsible police officials.
Key Observations and Directions:
- The bench comprising Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan was hearing the State's appeal challenging the acquittal of the accused by the Uttarakhand High Court. The High Court had overturned the conviction on the grounds that the prosecution failed to establish the 'last-seen' theory, which was the cornerstone of the case.
- The Supreme Court observed that the accused had sustained injuries, including a broken leg, during his custodial detention. The High Court had relied on medical evidence, which confirmed that the injuries resulted from the use of heavy objects and were not caused by a fall, as initially claimed by the police.
- In light of these findings, the Supreme Court ordered an inquiry into the custodial assault and directed the District Magistrate to take legal action against the police officers involved.
Critical Analysis of Prosecution’s Case:
- During the proceedings, the Court noted that a key prosecution witness discredited the case by admitting that he could not identify the accused in court. Furthermore, he failed to confirm whether the accused was last seen with the deceased on the day of the incident.
- The Court emphasized that the "last-seen theory", which formed the basis of the prosecution's case, had collapsed due to lack of credible evidence.
Court's Remarks on the State’s Appeal:
- Questioning the merit of the appeal, the Supreme Court remarked: "The view taken by the High Court is certainly a plausible view which could have been taken on the basis of evidence on record. In fact, this is a case where no other view was possible. We wonder why the State has preferred these appeals against acquittal in such a case. The appeals are accordingly dismissed."
- The Court expressed its discontent over the unnecessary litigation initiated by the State and upheld the High Court's verdict.
- Despite the dismissal of the appeal, the Supreme Court directed that the case be listed for further directions on April 4, 2025, to review the inquiry report to be submitted by the District Magistrate.
Case Title: STATE OF UTTARAKHAND VERSUS NANKU @ PAPPU & ANR., Criminal Appeal Nos.1189-1190/2015
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