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Vijay Thakur v. State of Himachal Pradesh

Criminal Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Criminal Appeal No. 632 of 2011)Decided 19 Sept 2014
Criminal Appeal No. 632 of 2011
Justice J. Chelameswar · Justice A.K. Sikri

Background

A hired van's driver and a passenger were found murdered, and the vehicle was later recovered abandoned. Vijay Thakur and Surjeet Khachi received convictions alongside another accused, based on their earlier association and alleged discoveries of items. They challenged whether the evidence actually connected them with the killings.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court allowed their appeals and ordered release unless needed in another case. Evidence of possession and attempted sale of the van concerned the other accused, not these appellants. The alleged discoveries were doubtful, including items supposedly lying intact outdoors for months and a witness who had not attended the claimed recovery. The circumstantial chain broke after the appellants' earlier journey with the co-accused, and suspicion could not supply the missing proof.

Lesson Learnt

Being associated with someone later linked to a crime is not enough to prove guilt. Recovered objects must be reliably connected to the accused and the offence, and the entire circumstantial chain must exclude reasonable alternatives.

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

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