In Brief
The appellants (deceased's son and the State of Rajasthan) challenged the High Court's acquittal of five accused in a murder case where the victim, Balbir Singh, was fatally hit by a jeep driven by Sheeshpal in December 1993. The prosecution claimed a criminal conspiracy, but the High Court found the eyewitness evidence unreliable due to delays in recording statements, inconsistencies, unnatural presence of witnesses, and their status as interested relatives. The Supreme Court upheld the acquittal, holding that the prosecution failed to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. The Court emphasised that eyewitness identifications in darkness from considerable distance were suspect, and the jeep was not convincingly connected to the incident.
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