In Brief
Three appellants were convicted of murder (Section 302 IPC) as members of an unlawful assembly (Section 149 IPC) for the shooting death of Ajay in Haryana. The Supreme Court set aside their convictions and acquitted them, finding the prosecution's case rested entirely on the inconsistent testimony of one eyewitness (PW-9), who failed to identify the appellants in his initial statement and named them only in court. The CCTV footage lacked forensic authenticity and faces were indecipherable. Critically, only the main accused Pawan fired the fatal shot; no overt act was attributed to the three appellants. The alleged motive involved a quarrel between Ravi and the deceased that did not extend to the appellants, and the absence of key witness Suraj created a material evidentiary gap. The Court held that the prosecution failed to prove the appellants' shared common object or awareness of the likely offence, necessitating acquittal on grounds of miscarriage of justice.
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