Supreme Court acquits accused in a circumstantial murder case, emphasizing that suicide could not be ruled out and prosecution failed to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

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Case Overview

Case Name: Nilesh Baburao Gitte vs. State of Maharashtra

A Division Bench of Justice KV Viswanathan and Justice K. Vinod Chandran of the Supreme Court set aside the conviction of a man accused of murdering his mother in Maharashtra . The Court found that the case was based entirely on circumstantial evidence and lacked definitive medical or forensic proof of homicide . Both the Trial Court and Bombay High Court had convicted the appellant, sentencing him to life imprisonment which was overturned by the Supreme Court .

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Key Aspects

Before delving into the merits, the Court emphasized that criminal cases based on circumstantial evidence demand strict scrutiny and the prosecution must exclude every possible hypothesis except guilt .

• The alleged incident occurred in 2010 in Taloni Village, Ambajogai, Maharashtra .
• The police received information about a “doubtful death” and found a body prepared for cremation .
• The appellant, son of the deceased Sunanda, was accused of hurriedly organizing the cremation .
• The doctor opined “asphyxia due to strangulation,” but later admitted it could be due to hanging .
• The prosecution failed to produce direct evidence linking the appellant to the alleged murder .

Legal Insights

The Court relied on the principle of proof beyond reasonable doubt under Section 101 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 emphasizing that suspicion, however strong, cannot replace proof .

• Section 8, Evidence Act (currently section 6 of Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam)– motive must be proved through reliable evidence .
• Medical ambiguity indicated suicide could not be ruled out .
• Lack of credible chain of circumstantial evidence failed to meet the standards for conviction .
• The Court reiterated that false implication and procedural flaws vitiate conviction in criminal jurisprudence .

Court’s Verdict

The Supreme Court acquitted Nilesh Baburao Gitte, setting aside the conviction and sentence imposed by lower courts . It observed that the prosecution failed to establish homicidal death and that suicide remained a plausible explanation, thus granting the benefit of doubt to the appellant .

Source – Supreme Court of India 

Read also – Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam

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