In Brief
Four men were tried for a murder occurring on 9 January 1999. The deceased Akbar sustained four head injuries and died. The accused were initially tried together, then separately. The Supreme Court examined the credibility of eyewitnesses Deenu and Ahmad, who gave contradictory statements in two separate trials with material variations and improvements. The Court found the weapon recoveries from two accused unproved. Setting aside conviction of Mohd. Jamil for murder (Section 302), it maintained his conviction for causing hurt (Section 323). Mohd. Yunus's acquittal for murder was upheld. The judgment emphasizes that murder convictions cannot rest on testimony from witnesses whose credibility has been seriously undermined by contradictions and embellishments.
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