Why SC acquitted death row convict in 2014 rape-murder of Mumbai techie

What was the incident?

The unfortunate had returned from a abrogation to Mumbai and reached the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) connected January 5, 2014. Her begetter tried contacting her, including the hostel she past stayed at, but could not get successful interaction with her. He past filed a missing ailment and came to Mumbai to look for her.

Based connected the last-known determination of the victim’s phone, a hunt was conducted on the Eastern Express Highway adjacent Bhandup. The constabulary recovered a half-burnt decomposed assemblage of a pistillate connected January 16, 2014. Her begetter identified the assemblage arsenic his daughter’s based connected a ringing connected her finger. The aesculapian study established the origin of decease arsenic caput wounded with smothering, and besides recovered grounds of intersexual assault. Following this, the constabulary filed a lawsuit of murder.

Nearly 2 months later, connected March 2, 2014, the constabulary arrested Sanap. The constabulary theorised that helium had offered the pistillate a assistance astatine LTT but took a detour connected the mode to her hostel. According to the police, helium took her to the bushes wherever helium raped and killed her. He allegedly doused her assemblage successful petrol to destruct grounds earlier robbing her of her belongings.

What had the little courts considered portion sentencing Sanap to death?

The little courts chiefly relied connected the CCTV footage from the railway station. The proceedings tribunal said that the footage intelligibly showed the unfortunate with her telephone to her ear, and the accused walking up of her pulling her trolley bag, which her begetter had identified.

The courts besides relied connected the witnesser testimonies of a wage and parkland attendant and a pre-paid taxi supervisor who were contiguous astatine the railway presumption connected January 5, 2014. The statements of the 2 were taken successful March, wherever they said they had seen the unfortunate with a antheral and described him, aboriginal identifying him successful the CCTV footage arsenic well.

Further, the courts relied connected the aesculapian report, which established the unfortunate had been smothered to decease and indicated intersexual assault.

Other grounds that the courts relied connected were recoveries made astatine the lawsuit of the accused. The courts said that grounds showed that Sanap told the constabulary aft his apprehension that helium had fixed distant the trolley container of the unfortunate to an aged pistillate beggar successful Nashik, which the constabulary recovered. The courts relied connected her grounds astir the bag.

The sessions tribunal cited the betterment of the victim’s individuality paper from the location of Sanap’s sister. It besides relied connected an extra-judicial confession of an acquaintance of Sanap, calling him a ‘star witness’. The constabulary had claimed that Sanap had taken the idiosyncratic to the spot to bring his motorbike and that confessed to him astir sidesplitting the woman. While Sanap said that helium was falsely implicated by the acquaintance owed to a past quarrel, the tribunal said that the idiosyncratic had fixed a connection aft Sanap’s arrest, and had nary crushed to implicate him.

And wherefore did the Supreme Court accidental determination were gaping holes successful the probe?

CCTV: The apex tribunal discarded arsenic grounds the CCTV footage wherever the unfortunate was past seen live and allegedly with Sanap, absent a certificate nether Section 65-B of the Indian Evidence Act. The acrophobic certificate is indispensable to authenticate physics grounds and to regularisation retired tampering. The SC highlighted its value fixed the decease condemnation handed by the little courts successful this case. It besides noted that the investigating serviceman was alert of this, and had taken it for different physics grounds successful the case, similar the Call Data Records.

Test Identification Parade: The tribunal held the trial recognition parade for the witnesses to place the accused arsenic invalid. It said that Sanap’s photograph had wide circulated successful the media, including grainy stills from the CCTV footage. The tribunal held it implausible that the witnesses could person identified him based connected those photographs alone.

Key witnesses who claimed to spot the accused with the victim: The SC considered the testimonies of 2 persons, the pre-paid taxi booth relation and the pay-and-park attendant. It agreed with Sanap’s lawyers that the statements of these 2 men were taken lone successful March 2014, 2 months aft the probe had begun. The tribunal said that determination was an inexplicable hold and they had not disclosed thing astir seeing the unfortunate and the accused erstwhile enquiries were archetypal made astatine the railway presumption successful January.

The SC besides discarded the grounds of a dog-walker who claimed to person seen the accused astatine the spot wherever the assemblage was found. It said that it was ‘unnatural’ that helium remembered connected January 19, 2014, what had happened connected January 5, 2014, erstwhile helium could not retrieve different past information.

Last seen: In transgression law, the onus is connected the defence to wide its side, if the prosecution tin found that small clip had elapsed betwixt erstwhile an accused and deceased were past seen unneurotic and erstwhile the unfortunate was recovered dead.

In this case, the SC held that this had not happened. It referred to aesculapian experts who established the clip of decease astatine 8 to 10 days earlier the post-mortem connected January 17, 2014. The tribunal frankincense concluded that the unfortunate could person died connected immoderate time betwixt January 7 and January 9, 2014, and overmuch clip had lapsed since erstwhile the accused was ‘last seen’ with the victim.

Extra-judicial confession: The tribunal said that determination were galore omissions successful the connection of the acquaintance to whom Sanap was alleged to person fixed an extra-judicial confession that helium had killed the woman. It besides said that portion specified confessions are anemic grounds to basal a conviction, it could not beryllium said that Sanap could person confessed to the acquaintance, fixed they were not close.

Recovery: The tribunal noted that the beggar from whom the trolley container was allegedly recovered had told the proceedings tribunal that she could not recollect the idiosyncratic who had fixed her the item. She has besides said that she submitted a thumb content to the constabulary arsenic they threatened to apprehension her.

The constabulary had besides claimed that an individuality paper belonging to the unfortunate was recovered successful the accused’s sister’s home. The tribunal said that this was unnatural arsenic the accused would not support the individuality paper for implicit 2 months.