Three persons including a 27-year-old woman were sentenced to one year of rigorous imprisonment by a sessions court for causing simple injuries to a person who died after the incident.

The court handed down a lesser punishment to the accused as the prosecution failed to prove in the court that the deceased had succumbed to the injuries caused by the accused. Additional Sessions Judge S M Shembhole held Rahim Rehan Sheikh (31), Pappu alias Karim Sheikh (25) and Faroo alias Farida Sheikh (27) guilty under IPC section 323 for simply hurting Nanu alias Kayum Khan in a slum at Deonar last year.

According to prosecution, the three accused and the deceased were staying in the same locality of Gautam Nagar in Deonar and often had quarrels among them. On May 29, 2008, the accused assaulted Khan with belts and hammer after which he suffered grievous injuries. He later died in the hospital due to the injuries. The police arrested the accused under sections 302 (murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

During the trial, the prosecution examined 10 witnesses including five panch witnesses who told the court that the police had made them sign on already-prepared statements. One of the witnesses, who the police claimed acted as a panch when they recovered the hammer used to assault Khan, turned hostile.

Similarly, there were contradictions in the testimonies of the two eyewitnesses - one of them was the complainant in the case. The forensic expert of Rajawadi Hospital, Dr Pravin Bagul who conducted the post-mortem on the body, deposed before the court and ruled out any possibility of the deceased having suffered injuries from belts and hammer, which was the prosecution case. Defence lawyer Jayesh Vithlani said, “The court has just accepted the presence of the accused at the time of the incident. But not accepted the prosecution’s claim that the actual cause of the death was due to the assault by the accused. Since the prosecution could not prove this important fact, the court has set aside the serious charge of murder levelled against my clients.”

... contd.