In Brief
Kusal Toppo and another were convicted of murder and robbery in the death of Sita Devi, a truck owner, based primarily on extra-judicial confessions by co-accused and recovery of a rope. The Supreme Court set aside the convictions and acquitted the appellants. The Court held that extra-judicial confessions are weak evidence and cannot support a conviction without independent corroborating proof. Since the rope was a common household item without forensic analysis linking it to the crime, its recovery under Section 27 of the Evidence Act had no evidentiary value. The confessions lacked sufficient corroboration to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
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