71 of 87 witnesses renege, murder accused acquitted

NEW DELHI: In a classic case of witnesses turning hostile, 71 of the 87 witnesses reneged from their statement, including a young boy who in 2011 witnessed his father being hacked to death, paving the way for acquittal of accused with Supreme Court on Friday ruling that conviction could not be held only on the basis of testimony of the police.

Setting aside the high court's conviction order in the murder case, the apex court sympathised with HC judges and said "We quite understand the consternation of the learned judges, in the cold-blooded murder of a person, carried out in front of his own son where the investigation though elaborate, it collapsed miserably at the trial, where the prosecution witnesses; all of them, turned hostile".

"We share consternation of learned judges but that is no reason for us to rely on the story scripted by investigating agency based on so-called voluntary statements and recoveries made, which prosecution failed to prove to have a nexus with the crime," SC said.

"We cannot but observe that the judgment of the high court reversing the order of acquittal of the trial court proceeds on mere surmises and conjectures relying wholly on the testimony of the investigating officers, who merely regurgitated the statements recorded under Section 161 (statement before police) and the voluntary statements of the accused," the bench said.

The court said that there were not even two views coming forth from the evidence and the only view that comes forth was that the prosecution completely failed to prove the allegations raised and charged against each of the accused, more by reason of all the witnesses paraded before court, at the trial, having turned hostile for reasons unknown.

"Whatever be the reason behind such hostility, it cannot result in a conviction, based on the testimony of the investigating officers, which is founded only on Section 161 statements and voluntary statements of accused," it said.