No direct evidence of encounter of Sohrabuddin Shaikh and 2 others: Bombay HC

Mumbai: The case of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is based on circumstantial evidence and there are several broken links in the chain of circumstances, the Bombay High Court said while dismissing the appeals into the sensational twin encounters involving alleged gangster Sohrabuddin Sheikh, his wife Kausar Bi and his associate Tulsiram Prajapati.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad upheld the acquittal granted by a Special Court of the CBI and dismissed the appeals filed by Sohrabuddin Sheikh’s brothers, Rubabuddin Sheikh and Nayabuddin Sheikh.

“In a case based on circumstantial evidence, the law requires that the circumstances relied upon by the prosecution (CBI) must be fully established and form a complete chain of circumstances which point out only to the guilt of the accused person and rule out any other hypothesis consistent with the innocence of the accused people,” the bench has said in its verdict on Thursday.

The 50-page judgement was made available on Friday.

Upholding the December 21, 2018 verdict by the then Special CBI Judge SJ Sharma, the High Court bench observed, “The trial court applied the correct and settled legal principles in law. Its conclusions are not contrary to the evidence and documents on record. This also cannot be held that the judgment of the trial court is manifestly unjust and unreasonable based on erroneous law and facts.”

“The judgment of acquittal by the trial court on 21 December 2018 is rendered on consideration of the relevant materials on record keeping in mind the fundamental principles of criminal jurisprudence that the prosecution must establish its case beyond reasonable doubt. We find no ground to interfere with the judgment rendered by the Special Judge,” the High Court said.

On the apprehension and encounter, the High Court said the foundation of the prosecution story is not established at all inasmuch as the prosecution failed to establish the abduction of Sohrabuddin Shaikh, Kausar Bi and Tulsiram Prajapati, their illegal detention at Disha Farmhouse and Arham Farmhouse and the alleged fake encounters.

“There is no direct evidence of encounter of Sohrabuddin Shaikh or Kausar Bi or Tulsiram Prajapati. There is also no evidence to establish the presence of the accused persons at the place of occurrence and at the time of occurrence,” the court said.

In a strong observation, the Bombay High Court noted, “A judgment of acquittal cannot be interfered in a casual or cavalier manner and it is not permissible in law to overturn the judgment only on the ground that another view is possible."

"The High Court must take a holistic view and not a myopic view of re-appreciation of the evidence and render its judgment keeping in mind the cardinal principle of criminal jurisprudence that there is presumption of innocence in favour of the accused.”

The court further noted that such presumption continues at all stages of the trial and gets concretized when the trial ends in the acquittal. “The judgment of acquittal strengthens the presumption of innocence of the accused and a higher threshold is required to rebut the same in an appeal against acquittal,” it said.