In Brief
Pattu Rajan and others were convicted of murdering Santhakumar and hiding the body, with the trial court finding them guilty under IPC Sections 364, 304, and 201. The High Court affirmed the conviction but upgraded the charge to Section 302 (murder). The Supreme Court upheld the conviction, rejecting arguments that the murder FIR was improperly registered as a continuation of an earlier abduction case. The Court found that the incidents were distinct in time, place, and intention. It affirmed that identification based on superimposition test was properly admitted as corroborating evidence alongside witness testimony, clothing identification, and scar marks. The Court emphasized that the prosecution proved guilt through strong circumstantial evidence including motive, last seen testimony, and body recovery, with the accused's failure to explain these circumstances creating adverse inference.
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