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Labhuji Amratji Thakor & Ors. v. The State of Gujarat

Criminal Appeal · 2018 INSC 1049Decided 13 Nov 2018
Criminal Appeal No. 1349 of 2018
Justice A.K. Sikri · Justice Ashok Bhushan · Justice Ajay Rastogi

Background

A mother filed an FIR alleging her 14-year-old daughter was abducted by one Natuji, who was chargesheeted alone under Sections 363/366 IPC and Sections 3/4 of the POCSO Act. More than a year later, during trial, the victim's court statement additionally named the appellants (Labhuji and two others) as having been present or having driven a jeep used during the events. The prosecution applied under Section 319 CrPC to add the appellants as accused; the trial court rejected this (suspecting mala fide motive), but the Gujarat High Court reversed that order and directed that the appellants be summoned for trial.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court relied on the Constitution Bench ruling in Hardeep Singh v. State of Punjab, which holds that the extraordinary power under Section 319 CrPC must be exercised sparingly, only on evidence stronger than what is needed to merely frame a charge: evidence that, if unrebutted, would lead to conviction. Examining the victim's own statement, the Court found she never alleged any act of sexual offence or abduction by the appellants; at most, she said they were present in or associated with a jeep used to transport her, which did not show complicity in the POCSO/abduction offence. The mother's statement implicating the appellants was hearsay. Because the High Court's four-paragraph order never applied this stringent test or gave adequate reasons, the Supreme Court set aside the High Court's judgment and restored the trial court's rejection of the Section 319 application, allowing the appeal.

Lesson Learnt

Courts cannot add new accused mid-trial merely because a witness mentions someone's name in passing: the law requires evidence strong enough that, if unrebutted, it would support a conviction, not just presence or association with the main accused.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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