Onlykashmir.in News Desk
Srinagar, Oct 30: The Court of 3rd Additional District and Sessions Judge Srinagar, presided over by Dinesh Gupta, has acquitted two persons (Name Withheld) in a decade-old arms recovery case registered under FIR No. 77/2014 at Police Station Shergarhi under Section 7/25 of the Arms Act.
The accused had been facing trial for over ten years and were finally acquitted after the court found that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges beyond reasonable doubt. In its detailed 30-page judgment, the court observed that the investigation and evidence presented by the prosecution suffered from major procedural and evidentiary lapses.
The judgment noted that “none of the prosecution witnesses stated that the accused were affiliated with any militant outfit,” and that “all witnesses categorically admitted that no civilian witness was associated with the alleged recovery despite the occurrence taking place in a busy locality.” The court further pointed out that the investigating officer had failed to seal or mark the recovered grenades or produce any ballistic expert report confirming that the seized items were live ammunition.
Quoting the Supreme Court’s precedent in Ashish Batham v. State of M.P., the judge reiterated that “the fundamental presumption in criminal law is the innocence of the accused, and conviction cannot be based on suspicion, however strong.”
Holding that the prosecution failed to fulfill the legal ingredients required under Section 7/25 of the Arms Act, the court dismissed the case and ordered that the seized material be sent to the District Armory Srinagar. The accused were represented by Advocate Abid Malla, while the Union Territory was represented by the Learned Assistant Public Prosecutor.
