In Brief
Khekh Ram was convicted by the High Court of Himachal Pradesh for possession and transportation of 14.75 kg of charas (cannabis), reversing his acquittal by the Trial Court. The core issue was whether the appellant was identified as the driver of the vehicle from which contraband was seized. The Supreme Court held that the eyewitness identification was weak (witnesses saw him from 40-50 yards in searchlight, had never met him before, saw only his back and side), no test identification parade was conducted, and investigative documents contained anomalies (photographs bearing wrong dates, the driver's identity omitted from the original seizure report). The recovery of the appellant's bank passbook from the vehicle, without cogent identification evidence, could not prove his conscious possession. The Court restored the acquittal, holding that suspicion cannot substitute for proof and the prosecution failed to establish its case beyond reasonable doubt.
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