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Md. Jabbar Ali & Ors. vs The State of Assam

Criminal Appeal · 2022 INSC 1096Decided 17 Oct 2022
Criminal Appeal No. 1105 of 2010
Ajay Rastogi · B.V. Nagarathna

Background

On 19.11.1999 in Barpeta, Assam, an altercation broke out when Md. Baju Mollik was ploughing his land and accused No.11 confronted him; several co-accused, armed with knives, spears, daggers and other weapons, then attacked him and others who came to the scene, fatally stabbing one Ekkabar Ali and injuring several witnesses. Eleven persons were tried; the Fast Track Court convicted them of murder, rioting and related offences, sentencing three to life imprisonment and others to shorter terms, and the Gauhati High Court dismissed their appeals and confirmed the convictions. The accused (having been on bail for years) appealed to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court re-appreciated the evidence and found the Trial Court and High Court had overlooked material contradictions and inconsistencies in the prosecution witnesses' testimony. It specifically noted that the medical reports of PW-7 and PW-9 showed the injuries to several witnesses were caused by a "blunt weapon," which was inconsistent with the prosecution's version of stabbing with sharp weapons like a falla or spear, undermining the reliability of the ocular evidence. While normally slow to interfere with concurrent findings of fact under Article 136, the Court held that where such findings are shown to be perverse or based on erroneous appreciation of evidence, interference is warranted. Concluding that both lower courts had failed to properly weigh these discrepancies, the Supreme Court set aside the convictions of all appellants and acquitted them of all charges.

Lesson Learnt

Even when two courts below have agreed on a conviction, the Supreme Court will step in and acquit if a careful re-examination shows the medical evidence contradicts the eyewitnesses' account of how injuries were caused: consistency between ocular and medical evidence is essential to sustain a criminal conviction.

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

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