03 June 2016
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA - CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION - CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.416 OF 2016 (Arising out of SLP(Crl.) No. 2301 of 2016) - Bhagwan Sahai and Anr. …..Appellants Versus State of Rajasthan …..Respondent High Court is devoid of legal merits. Once the Court came to a finding that the prosecution has suppressed the genesis and origin of the occurrence and also failed to explain the injuries on the person of the accused including death of father of the appellants, the only possible and probable course left open was to grant benefit of doubt to the appellants. The appellants can legitimately claim right to use force once they saw their parents being assaulted and when actually it has been shown that due to such assault and injury their father subsequently died. In the given facts, adverse inference must be drawn against the prosecution for not offering any explanation much less a plausible one. Drawing of such adverse inference is given a go-bye in the case of free fight mainly because the occurrence in that case may take place at different spots and in such a manner that a witness may not reasonably be expected to see and therefore explain the injuries sustained by the defence party. This is not the factual situation in the present case.