The Delhi High Court has set aside the conviction and life sentence awarded to a police officer for the alleged murder of a person. While passing the judgement on Monday, the high court asked the police commissioner to look into the anomalies in maintaining the Asla Registers at police stations.
A Division Bench, comprising justices Mukta Gupta and Poonam A Bamba, said, "It is evident that the prosecution has not been able to prove that the appellant committed the murder of the deceased beyond a reasonable doubt."
Hence, the judgment of conviction and order on sentence is set aside, the bench said.
Further, the prosecution also tries to establish a motive on behalf of the appellant to commit the crime i.e. a financial dispute between the appellant and the victim however, the witness on this count, Baddal, father of the victim has not supported the case of the prosecution, the court said.
Hence, there is no evidence on record to prove even an iota of any financial dispute between the two, which could be the motive to commit the alleged offence, the court noted.
"The appellant, Surender Kumar Mathur, is directed to be released forthwith if not required in any other case, the high court ordered in the judgement passed on April 10," the bench ruled.
The high court directed that a copy of the judgment is to sent to the Commissioner of Police, Delhi to look into the anomalies in maintaining Asia registers at police stations.
The appellant had challenged the judgment of March 5, 2019, passed by the learned Trial Court convicting the appellant for the murder of one Jai Kumar; and also the order on sentence dated March 15, 2019, directing him to undergo rigorous life imprisonment.
The trial court convicted the appellant in 2014 for the offence in this case, in January 2014. The judgement was set aside and the matter was remanded back to the trial court. The judgement was set aside saying that the trial court judge had shown undue haste in conducting the trial and a fair opportunity for effective cross-examination of the witness was not given to the appellant.
The prosecution's case is that a body lying in a pool of blood in the kitchen of a flat in Rohini and there was also a bullet wound on the victim. Three used leads and two empty cartridges were found lying near the body. A case was registered at Beghampur police station on December 3, 2009.
The counsel for the appellant argued that there was no motive for his client to commit the alleged offence, as was also noted by the trial court in its impugned judgment.
It was also contended that even the identity of the dead was not established by the prosecution and the same is doubtful.
It was pointed out further that the identity of the dead could have been established by DNA evidence, but no efforts were made to get the DNA of the dead. Further, there was nothing on record to show that the appellant was acquainted with the dead, the counsel argued.
It was further argued that the prosecution failed to connect the pistol allegedly used in the offence to the appellant at the relevant time. Even the register is silent about the Road Certificate through which the empty cartridges were sent to FSL, which raising doubts on the proper custody of the said cartridges, the counsel claimed.
As per the Asla register, the appellant was not in possession of the alleged pistol on December 1-2, as also on the intervening night of December 2-3, 2009, the counsel argued.
It has further not been proved by the prosecution that the cartridges recovered were nowhere proved to have been fired from the alleged pistol.
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