Lack of evidence leads to murder charges being reduced

The court stated that the decision was taken because “how and who was responsible for the said injury remains uncertain.”

The victim had received a fatal injury on his back on Ram Navami at Nand Nagri in East Delhi in 1990. The court not only held Sanjay and Naresh guilty of a lesser offence but also allowed a request by their counsel not to direct them to surrender and serve the remaining punishment.

Naresh remained in jail for five years and his brother Sanjay for more than four years during the trial.  The court imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on each of them and directed both the convicts to pay a compensation of Rs 35,000 each to the widow of the deceased.

The two had appealed to the High Court against the lower court judgment which had awarded them life imprisonment while holding them guilty of murder. “We are inclined to accept the alternative submission made by the counsel for the appellants that their conviction should be converted from Section 302 of the IPC to 304-II IPC,” a Division Bench of the court said.

“Normally, we would have asked the appellants to surrender and undergo further sentence. 

However, there are certain circumstances which have impelled us to accept the appeal of the appellants that they should not be asked to surrender and undergo further imprisonment, “ the Bench added further.

“The appellants will pay a fine of Rs 5,000 each. We also direct them to pay a compensation of Rs 35,000 each which would be paid to the widow of the deceased...” the Bench directed.