In Brief
A widow was found dead in a dry well with a cloth tied around her neck. The accused was convicted of murder based on circumstantial evidence: he was last seen with the deceased, made a false statement about her whereabouts, and absconded. However, the Supreme Court set aside the conviction, holding that the prosecution failed to establish a complete and unbroken chain of circumstances. The time gap between the last sighting and estimated death (two to four weeks) was too substantial to rely on the 'last seen together' theory. Critical evidence—identification of recovered ornaments—was riddled with contradictions. The Court held that strong suspicion, however compelling, cannot substitute for proof beyond reasonable doubt in circumstantial evidence cases.
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