Penal Code, 1860:
s.302 – Prosecution under – For killing new-born baby girl by strangulating her – Courts below convicted the accused on the basis of circumstantial evidence – Appeal to Supreme Court – Held: Conviction cannot be based solely on circumstantial evidence, unless chain of circumstances is established – The facts of the case show that there was possibility of natural death of the child – The evidence is not sufficient to bring home the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt and hence acquitted.
Allowing the appeal, the Court
HELD: 1. To base conviction solely on the circumstantial evidence, unless chain of circumstances is established conviction cannot be recorded. From the totality of evidence on record, it is clear that the baby girl was put in incubator with an oxygen mask and she had also not opened her eyes and she did not cry after birth. There was a possibility of natural death. Though the doctor had opined in the post-mortem report that the cause of death was asphyxia, but in absence of any clear evidence on record, it is not safe to convict the appellant for the offence under Section 302 IPC. As the evidence on record is not sufficient to bring home the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt, the appellant is entitled to benefit of doubt for acquittal from the charge framed against her. [Para 10][155-F-H; 156-A]
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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