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Sunil Kumar vs State of Kerala & Anr.

Criminal Appeal · 2022 INSC 651Decided 22 Jun 2022
Criminal Appeal No. 907 of 2022
Ajay Rastogi · C.T. Ravikumar

Background

In 1999, the appellant and co-accused were found storing about 3,000 litres of illicit spirit in a rented house in Kerala. When police arrived, the appellant and another accused attempted suicide by cutting their wrists. He was convicted by the trial court under the Abkari Act and Section 309 IPC (attempt to suicide) and sentenced to 3 years' imprisonment. On appeal, the Kerala High Court upheld the Abkari Act conviction (reducing the sentence to 2 years) but set aside the Section 309 IPC conviction.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court reviewed the evidence of eleven prosecution and four defence witnesses and found no reason to disturb the conviction under the Abkari Act. However, noting that 23 years had passed since the 1999 incident and that the appellant had no other criminal antecedents, the Court further reduced the sentence to one year's simple imprisonment (with the same fine and default term) while upholding the conviction. The appellant, who had earlier been exempted from surrendering, was directed to surrender within four weeks to serve the remaining sentence.

Lesson Learnt

Courts can moderate sentences for old, low-level offences where decades have passed and the accused has no repeat offending, even while upholding the underlying conviction on the merits.

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

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