In Brief
A man was summoned as an accused under Section 319 of the Code of Criminal Procedure based solely on the widow's deposition claiming he murdered her husband. The Supreme Court set aside the summons, holding that invoking Section 319's extraordinary power requires strong and cogent evidence—a standard higher than prima facie guilt but lower than conviction certainty. A single uncross-examined deposition alone was insufficient. The Court emphasized that Section 319 enables joint trial, not guilt-finding, and must be exercised sparingly and never casually.
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