In Brief
Two men were convicted of murdering a village election agent during a disputed panchayat election in Haryana. The Supreme Court examined the circumstantial evidence case and found critical defects: key prosecution witnesses had credibility issues, the chain of circumstantial evidence contained significant gaps, and the extra-judicial confession was made under suspicious circumstances by a person with electoral rivalry against the accused. The forensic report author was not examined in court. The Court held that practical reasonable doubt persisted and the prosecution failed to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt, allowing the appeals and setting aside the convictions.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.