In Brief
The appellant was convicted of murder (IPC s. 302) along with a co-accused based on the testimony of a sole eyewitness (PW1). The Supreme Court reversed the conviction, holding that PW1's evidence was fraught with improbabilities and oddities inconsistent with normal human conduct: he remained silent and indifferent for an entire hour despite witnessing a brutal murder, was intoxicated, delayed disclosing the crime for three days, and the spot map indicated no light source for him to have seen the incident. Without credible eyewitness testimony, the prosecution failed to prove the charge beyond reasonable doubt. The court held that the alleged motive (illicit relationship) was not properly established. Consequently, the appellant was acquitted and ordered to be set at liberty.
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