Suspicion, however strong, cannot take place of proof: Court while acquitting man in murder case

Mumbai, Sep 24 (PTI) A court in Mumbai has ruled that suspicion, however strong, cannot take the place of proof, as it acquitted a 25-year-old man in a 2022 murder case of a woman, whose body was found in a bag at Versova beach here.

Additional sessions judge (Dindoshi court) D G Dhoble on Monday acquitted Shahazeb Ansari of the charges under sections 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

In the order made available on Wednesday, the court held that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused committed the murder of deceased Sonam Shukla and also that he disposed of her body to cause disappearance of evidence.

The prosecution's contention was that Ansari murdered Shukla as a result of a dispute over their love affair.

However, citing the testimony of witnesses, the court ruled that the prosecution failed to establish the motive.

The order noted that none of the witnesses stated that the accused and deceased were in a love relationship. No chats, messages or call records showing intimacy were placed on record.

The victim's father has categorically stated that he was unaware of any relation between the accused and his daughter and does not know who killed her, while her sister said the deceased was not in a relationship with the accused.

On the last seen theory, the court said the investigating officer himself admitted that there is no evidence to show that the accused was in company of the deceased on the relevant night.

The failure to examine the last person who saw the deceased alive is fatal to the prosecution. Thus, the last seen theory was not established by prosecution, the court ruled.

Further, the court did not find merit in the prosecution's argument that the tower location of the mobile phone of the accused was near the spot where the dead body was found.

It stressed that merely showing that the mobile phone of the accused was near a particular location at a certain time is not sufficient to hold that the accused had thrown the body in the absence of other strong evidence.

"Considering the cumulative effect of the above infirmities, the prosecution has not proved the case beyond reasonable doubt. Suspicion, however strong, cannot take the place of proof," the court ruled.

The court concluded that the chain of circumstances is not complete.

According to the prosecution, the body of the woman was found in a plastic gunny bag on Versova beach on April 28, 2022.

She had been strangled with an internet wire and hands and legs were also tied with the same wire.

Police had arrested the accused on the basis of technical probe involving mobile phone calls and chats and also by questioning kin. PTI AVI NP