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TMI Blog2003 (9) TMI 820X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o go to a police station. Much has been made of not lodging the case at the police post. An explanation has been offered as to why it has not been done. The High Court very lightly brushed it aside. Unfortunately, the High Court came to conclude on surmises and conjectures that the FIR was lodged after deliberation. There was no material to support such a conclusion. The distance between the police post and the Ilaqa Magistrate is about 20 K.M. The special report reached the Magistrate within a few hours. That by itself is not of suspicious circumstance. The High Court has not considered that the distance is 20 K.M. Additionally, no question was put to the investigating officer as to why it took 3 hours for the report to reach the Magistrate. Had such a question been put, the investigating officer would have been in a position to explain the delay, if any. Without seeking for a response from the investigating officer, it is not open to say that there was delay in sending the report. Otherwise, an adverse inference would be drawn in respect of a matter for which no explanation is sought for from the relevant witnesses. It is not the time, but unexplained delay in a case, which is of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed the legality of their conviction, a revision was filed to seek conviction of the acquitted accused and enhancement of the sentence passed against the convicted accused. 2. Prosecution version as unfolded during trial is as follows: On 11.6.1991 Mandip Singh (hereinafter referred to as the 'deceased') suffered homicidal death. The incident took place at about 5.30 a.m. on the aforesaid date. During the night between 10th and 11th of June, 1991 irrigation of certain lands under the cultivation of complainant Gurmail Singh (PW2) and others was being carried. During that night, deceased Mandip Singh who is the nephew of the Complainant Gurmail Singh, was sleeping near the tubewell in the adjacent land belonging to Sukhdev Singh. Deceased Mandip Singh was to get up in the morning in order to undertake the agricultural work in the land which was being cultivated by Gurmail Singh (PW2) and others. Gurmail Singh (PW2), therefore, went towards the place where deceased was sleeping. Pal Singh (PW3) was then irrigating his land near the place of occurrence. When Gurmail Singh (PW2) came near the place where deceased was sleeping, he noticed that the two accused-respondents and acqu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rushed to the village to inform his brother Baldev Singh who is the father of the deceased. The evidence does not indicate as to what steps Baldev Singh took on getting the information to set law into motion. According to Gurmail Singh (PW2), he and Baldev Singh proceeded towards the police station but on the way they happened to mere the patrolling police party at the Jalal bus stand. It was expected that Baldev Singh was to rush to the field where his son was killed, and ascertain the situation there. It is also in evidence that Gurmail Singh (PW2) owned a tractor. It was not explained why he and Baldev Singh did not try to cover the distance up to the police station by tractor. It has also been accepted that in a village there was a police post. The explanation that two policemen of the police post declined to take down report as officer in charge was outside the Ilaqa has been stated for the first time in Court. The distance between the village where the incident took place and the police station is 9 K.M. only. This distance could have been covered by using a tractor. Despite all these facilities being available, information was recorded at 10.45 a.m. It creates a strong suspi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... urther strengthened by acquittal. The golden thread which runs through the web of administration of justice in criminal cases is that if two views are possible on the evidence adduced in the case, one pointing to the guilt of the accused and the other to his innocence, the view which is favourable to the accused should be adopted. The paramount consideration of the Court is to ensure that miscarriage of justice is prevented. A miscarriage of justice which may arise from acquittal of the guilty is no less than from the conviction of an innocent. In a case where admissible evidence is ignored, a duty is cast upon the appellate Court to re-appreciate the evidence even where the accused has been acquitted, for the purpose of ascertaining as to whether any of the accused committed any offence or not. [See Bhagwan Singh and Ors. v. State of Madhya Pradesh. The principle to be followed by appellate Court considering the appeal against the judgment of acquittal is to interfere only when there are compelling and substantial reasons for doing so. If the impugned judgment is clearly unreasonable, it is a compelling reason for interference. These aspects were highlighted by this Court in Shiva ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ive using a tractor to cover a distance of 9 K.M. at a point of time, has been lost sight of by the High Court. It is not unusual for a person to avail public transport facility to go to a police station. Much has been made of not lodging the case at the police post. An explanation has been offered as to why it has not been done. The High Court very lightly brushed it aside. Unfortunately, the High Court came to conclude on surmises and conjectures that the FIR was lodged after deliberation. There was no material to support such a conclusion. The distance between the police post and the Ilaqa Magistrate is about 20 K.M. The special report reached the Magistrate within a few hours. That by itself is not of suspicious circumstance. The High Court has not considered that the distance is 20 K.M. Additionally, no question was put to the investigating officer as to why it took 3 hours for the report to reach the Magistrate. Had such a question been put, the investigating officer would have been in a position to explain the delay, if any. Without seeking for a response from the investigating officer, it is not open to say that there was delay in sending the report. Otherwise, an adverse i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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