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Radhey Shyam v. State of Rajasthan

Criminal Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Criminal Appeal No. 593 of 2005)Decided 25 Feb 2014
Criminal Appeal No. 593 of 2005
Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai · Justice Madan B. Lokur

Background

A father was convicted of killing his two children while staying at his in-laws' house for treatment. The prosecution relied chiefly on a young relative who claimed to have witnessed the attack and on alleged bloodstains and recovery of a blade. The father challenged the reliability of that account.

Decision Breakdown

The Court gave the appellant the benefit of doubt and set aside the conviction and life sentence. The child's changing account was not adequately supported by the other witnesses, whose versions contained significant contradictions. The alleged weapon recovery and seizure of clothes were also unreliable, and an important bloodstain allegation had not been put to the accused for explanation. His presence with the children could not cure those evidentiary failures. The Court ordered immediate release unless he was required in another case.

Lesson Learnt

A serious accusation still requires reliable proof. Courts must closely examine inconsistent eyewitness evidence and cannot replace missing proof with suspicion arising from the accused's presence at the scene.

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

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