Karnataka High Court quashes 44-year-old murder case, cites improbability of conviction

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has quashed legal proceedings against a 68-year-old Bengaluru resident in connection with a murder case registered 44 years ago in the then undivided Dakshina Kannada district.

Citing the improbability of conviction after such a long period, Justice M Nagaprasanna remarked, “If acquittal is inevitable, allowing the trial to proceed would merely squander precious judicial resources. This perhaps marks the closure of the state’s oldest case in its criminal justice system.” The case, registered on June 8, 1979, by Udupi police, stemmed from a land dispute involving Sri Admar Math in Udupi.

It was alleged that Seetharama Bhat, a tenant on the disputed land, along with Kitta alias Krishnappa, had attacked Narayanan Nair and Kunhirama with knives. Kunhirama succumbed to his injuries in the hospital.

Sanjeeva Handa, Basava Handa and Chandrashekar Bhat were charged with accompanying Seetharama Bhat and Kitta.

In the initial trial, Seetharama Bhat and Kitta were convicted, while two co-accused, Sanjeeva Handa and Basava Handa, were acquitted.

Upon appeal, Kitta’s conviction was overturned, but Seetharama Bhat’s sentence was upheld.

Recently, Udupi police sought to proceed against Chandrashekar Bhat alias Chandra, claiming that he had been absconding during the trial. Bhat, who is the son-in-law of Sanjeeva Handa, argued that he was unaware of the case as he had been residing in Bengaluru from 1979 to 2022.

Bhat claimed that he had never been summoned or served a warrant.

He applied for anticipatory bail after learning about the police's actions, but his plea was rejected by the Principal District and Sessions Judge, prompting him to approach the high court.

Justice Nagaprasanna noted that key witnesses from 44 years ago would now be unavailable, making the trial futile.

The court also observed that two other accused in the case had been acquitted due to lack of eyewitness identification, which applied to Bhat's situation as well.

The court concluded that continuing the trial would serve no purpose. “To save judicial time, it is deemed appropriate to obliterate the crime against the petitioner,” the judge said.

With this order, the 44-year-old case has been officially dismissed.