Witnesses Gave False Evidence, Trial Court Didn't Handle Case Properly: 14 Yrs On, Madhya Pradesh HC Overturns Murder Conviction Of 2 Women

The Jabalpur bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court set aside a 14-year-old murder conviction of two women who were also sentenced to life imprisonment, while observing that the trial court did not handle the case properly as "false evidence" had been given by prosecution witnesses. 

The high court further observed that even the police deliberately did not investigate the matter properly and left multiple angles unattended, thereby facilitating the prosecution witnesses to falsely implicate the two women. 

A division bench of Justice G S Ahluwalia and Justice Vishal Mishra in its 59 page order, after taking note of the witness testimonies, said that it was clear that the witnesses have deliberately implicated appellant women "falsely in the case". It further said that there were major contradictions in the evidence of certain prosecution witnesses.

Calling the manner in which the trial court treated the case as unfortunate the high court said,

"This Court has gone through the judgment passed by the Trial Court. It is really unfortunate, that the Trial Judge, took the matter in a most casual manner and did not appreciate the evidence in the light of provisions of law. The Trial Court must realize that they are dealing with the life and liberty of a person and no one should be punished without sound principles of law. Blindly accepting the Examination-in-Chief of the prosecution witnesses, without testing the same on the anvil of their cross-examination is not the proper way of appreciation of evidence. The Trial Court should not forget that cross-examination is the only tool in the hand of the accused to dislodge the prosecution case. The admissions made by witnesses in their cross-examination or material contradictions should be given due weightage”. 

Noting that witnesses had "deliberately deposed falsely before the Trial Court", and "even the police deliberately did not investigate the matter properly and left multiple angles unattended thereby facilitating the prosecution witnesses to falsely implicate" the two women, the bench directed the trial court to initiate proceedings against these witnesses for "giving false evidence" before the Court of law.

The bench said that if a court is of the view that the contradiction is not material, then it should point out the same. However, the bench said, ignoring the cross examination of the witnesses is not the "proper method of deciding the Trial".

Noting that one woman had remained in jail for 14 years and another was compelled to live in jail along with her minor kids, the bench said that the manner in which the Trial Court handled the case "is not appreciated".

In this case, the appellant women were accused of murdering the deceased by administering poison and staging the death as a suicide. The trial court in 2010 had convicted and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The prosecution claimed that the victim was living with the appellant after her husband died and was murdered by her and a co-accused. The prosecution mainly relied on the circumstantial evidence of witness testimony about the deceased's strained relationship with the appellants, the discovery of ligature marks on the deceased's neck and a bottle of pesticide found at the crime scene.

Setting aside the conviction and sentence of the trial court the high court also ordered the immediate release of one of the women after noting that she was in jail. 

Case title: Surajbai And Others Versus The State Of Madhya Pradesh

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (MP) 265

Case No: Cr.A. No.122/2011

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