The Supreme Court on Monday acquitted a man convicted of murder in a 2004 double homicide case, criticising the Allahabad High Court and the trial court for failing to extend the benefit of doubt despite evident shortcomings in the prosecution’s case.
A bench of Justices Manoj Mishra and Joymalya Bagchi allowed the appeal of Anjani Singh, who was convicted by a trial court in Ballia for murder and other charges, and whose conviction had been upheld by the High Court in July 2019.
According to the prosecution, Singh and his brother allegedly opened fire on a gathering of around 100 people during Durga Puja celebrations on October 20, 2004, following an altercation. Two persons were killed on the spot and several others, including a key prosecution witness, sustained injuries.
However, the top court found the prosecution’s narrative implausible.
“It is difficult to believe how a person with just a country-made pistol, which ordinarily is a single-shot weapon, would be able to escape along with two others, who were rendered weaponless, against an infuriated crowd of more than 100 people,” the bench observed.
The bench also noted that the pistol allegedly used in the incident was never recovered. More significantly, most of the injured eyewitnesses failed to identify the appellant, and only one prosecution witness supported the prosecution’s version of events.
“The testimony of the key prosecution witness was not of stellar quality to form the sole basis of Singh’s conviction,” the bench remarked, stressing that the courts below failed to properly scrutinise the reliability of the evidence.
The Court further said the manner of the incident described by the prosecution appeared doubtful:
“It appears to be a case where several attackers with firearms had opened fire. Thus, in any event, the incident did not occur in the manner as alleged by the prosecution, and the prosecution appears not to be coming out with the truth.”
Noting that Singh had no known motive to kill the deceased, the Court concluded that the case was a fit one where the benefit of doubt should have been extended.
“Taking a conspectus of the entire evidence… it was a fit case where the benefit of doubt ought to have been extended to the appellant by the courts below,” the judgment said.
Accordingly, the Court set aside the conviction and ordered that Anjani Singh be acquitted of all charges.
