In Brief
The appellant was arrested following alleged recovery of 2 kg of charas (hashish) from his bag. The trial judge acquitted him, finding the prosecution's account unreliable. The High Court reversed this, relying on police witnesses. The Supreme Court restored the acquittal, holding that the prosecution failed to prove foundational facts beyond reasonable doubt. The timing was physically impossible: a bus ticket showed the appellant boarded at 6:51 AM, yet police claimed his arrest at 6:15 AM at a location 26 km away requiring over an hour's travel. The independent witness denied witnessing any recovery. The court held that the prosecution cannot discard inconvenient independent witnesses to rely solely on police evidence, particularly in drug cases.
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