In Brief
Ram Gopal was convicted for the murder of Pratap Singh under Section 302 IPC based on circumstantial evidence. The prosecution established that Ram Gopal was last seen with the deceased on the evening before the body was discovered the next morning. The accused failed to explain when and how he parted company with the deceased. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction, holding that when the "last seen together" theory is coupled with proximate timing, motive, and recovery of the alleged murder weapon (an axe), the accused's failure to offer a reasonable explanation under Section 106 of the Evidence Act strengthens the prosecution case. The petition was dismissed.
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