Why do courts acquit criminals/accused?

 

Why do courts acquit criminals/accused?

Why is it in the news?

As per the news item published in the reputed Newspaper at Indore, the court acquitted three accused charged with murder and kidnapping of a 13 year old son of a medical shop owner. It was contended that most of the witnesses turned hostile and so the court acquitted the accused. The mother of the dead son was in the precinct of the court and she started sobbing but the accused came out with their smiling faces. Thus, the boy, who was killed, did not get justice even after his death.

Introduction

1.Once a crime is committed, the Police register FIR. Investigation goes on. 

• The investigation of an offence consists of proceeding of the investigating officer to the spot, ascertainment of facts and circumstances of the case, discovery and arrest of the suspected offenders, the examinations of various accused and the search of places or seizure of things considered necessary for the investigation and finally, formation of the opinion as to whether on the basis of materials collected, there is a case to present accused before the magistrate for trials and if so, taking the necessary steps by filing of a charge sheet under section 173 of crpc.

2.If there is sufficient evidence, the investigating officer produces a charge sheet in the court. The court starts the trial proceedings whereby examination chief, cross examination and re-examination of the witnesses, complainants and accused take place. The relevant documents are exhibited in the court of law before the accused. The Judge either convicts or acquits the accused on the basis of evidence brought before him. 

3.If there is sufficient evidence, the court convicts the accused as per the provision of Indian Penal court. If the court is not satisfied with the evidence brought before it, it may acquit the accused. 

Causes of the acquittal of the accused 

The acquittal of an accused can be attributed to the complexities of so many factors. These are -

• Insufficient evidence- If the prosecution fails to establish the guilt of the accused on the basis of insufficient evidence incriminating the accused, the court can acquit an accused. 

• Reasonable doubt- It is the duty of prosecution to prove the involvement of the accused in the crime beyond reasonable doubt. If the defence successfully introduces doubt about the involvement of the accused in the case, the court can give a verdict in favour of the accused by acquitting him. 

• Illegal evidence - If the court comes to the conclusion that the prosecution has obtained evidence unlawfully, it may not admit that illegal evidence in the court and this may lead to acquittal of the accused.

• False confessions - If defence proves that the confession of the accused was obtained by coercion, temptation, allurement or under duress, the court may not admit those confessions by the accused and this may lead to acquittal.

• Credibility of witnesses - If witnesses are inconsistent, biased , and their statements are contradicted by other evidence, it may create scepticism in the mind of the judge and he may acquit the accused because of the lack of accuracy among witnesses. 

• Failure in identification of unknown accused and stolen goods may lead to acquittal of accused.

• Alibi - If the defence successfully establishes the fact that the accused were far off from the place of occurrence of crime and it was not humanly possible to reach the place where the crime occurred, the court may presume that the accused are not involved in the commission of crime.

• If the expert testimony is challenged by the defence and their methodology or expert testimony is successfully impeached, the court may presume that the expert's testimony were vitiated and so it may acquit the accused. 

• Lack of jurisdiction- on account of lack of jurisdiction, the court can also acquit and accuse.

• Statutes of limitations -  The law dictates a specific time limit within which charges must be found. If the prosecution brings charges after the statute of limitation has expired, the accused may be acquitted due to the legal time limit. 

• Poor investigation - Investigation is the process of linking the chain of circumstances under which the crime occurred and the crime detected. If the Investigating Officer fails to establish the link of the occurrence and the detection of the crime and if there is a missing link, the court may acquit the accused. 

• Procedural violations - failure to adhere to legal procedure during evidence collection, statement of witnesses, arrest, searches can render evidence inadmissible in the court. 

• Political influence - Pressure from higher authorities or political masters can compromise the independence and impartiality of the investigation leading to the acquittal of the accused. 

• Resourceful and powerful accused - Sometimes accused are so powerful politically and economically that they exert enormous pressure upon witnesses, the police and the court. Moreover, these powerful accused hire reputed lawyers to defend their case. While the complainant and his government advocate can not match the legal knowledge and expertise of defence lawyers. This leads to the acquittal of the accused. 

• In addition, lack of expertise of the investigating officer, procedural violation, inadequate training and prejudice of the investigating officer are other factors for the acquittal of accused. 

Impact of acquittal of the accused on the society 

Society is disturbed whenever wrongful convictions take place or guilty individuals are acquitted. This leads to the erosion of public trust in law enforcement. The confidence of people in the criminal justice system is also shaken. Law and order situation worsens. Anarchy prevails. The prestige of police ebbs in the eyes of people. 

Conclusion

Acquittals of an accused occur on account of several factors. It is therefore pertinent that the comprehensive legal procedure is followed. The rights of the accused are safeguarded. The evidence is collected and scrutinised before producing them into the court of law so that the court can trust them. It must be remembered that as per the jurisprudence, every accused is innocent until proven guilty by the court. Efforts should be made to cross examine witnesses and accused in such a way that the court is satisfied with the collection of evidence and its authenticity. 

Can a Man be raped by woman?

 क्या पुरुष का भी बलात्कार होता है ? | Can a Man be raped by woman?

Why is it in the news?

1. Last year in 2022, four women raped a man at Jalandhar.

2. Delhi based center of civil society found that about 18% of Indian adult men reported by coerced or forced to have sex. Of those 16% claimed a female perpetrator and 2% male perpetrator. 

3. The incident of rape of man by woman is unreported in India because in a patriarchal society like us people do not take it seriously.

4. It is estimated that approximately 1 in 6 men were sexually abused as children.

5. Rape is thought to be a crime committed solely against women.

6. Men often do not report about sexual assault upon him by a woman because they are afraid that in case of reporting people will doubt their sexual orientation and label them homosexual. So, most of the time male victims try to conceal the rape on him.

7. It has been estimated in America that 10.5% men were raped by females.

What is rape?

1. In India, rape is always committed on female by male u/s 375 IPC when the sexual intercourse has been done against the will of the women, against her consent, and when consent has been obtained under threat of death or hurt or when her consent has been obtained by misrepresentation or when consent has been obtained by intoxicating her.

2. In India a rape will be committed when a girl is under 16 years of age and consent will be not applicable.

3. However, women is married to the man the act is not considered as rape whether or not she has consented. Only exception is that the wife must not be under 16 years of age or the couple is separated.

Akhilesh Jha. Legal Adda

What is the law of rape on man by woman in India?

    1. There is no such law for rape on adult man by woman in India

    2. However, under POCSO (Prevention of Children from Sexual offences),         there is a provision of gender neutrality. The irrespective of the gender                 whether boys or girls below 18 years, if they are sexually abused or exploited     or raped, the victim can file case against the accused under POSCO act

    3. In case of rape of man by woman there is no legal provision in India. At best     the offender can be prosecuted u/s 374 for unlawful compulsory labour. This         act punishes the offender for 1 year or with fine or with both if the accused         unlawfully compels any person to labour against the will of that person.

    4. The offence is cognizable, bailable, non compoundable and triable by any             magistrate.

Effects upon male victim

    1. The victim suffers from tension, headache, colitis, black eyes and soft             tissue injury and laceration.

    2. Social stigma upon male victim

    3.Post traumatic stress disorder 

    4. Male victims fear being labelled as homosexual or bisexual.

    5. Depression

    6. Alcoholism and drug abuse

    7. Suicidal thoughts

    8. Problems in intimate relationship

    9. Sense of being an inadequate man

    10. Sense of lost power and confidence

    11. The male victim needs extensive emotional and psychological healing             after the rape by female

Conclusion

    1. Like gender neutral law of POCSO, the rape law should also be made             gender neutral. 

    2. Since, Indian society particularly in metropolitan cities is changing fast and     because of the educational advancement among women, they have occupied     positions of authority in different departments, public sectors and private             sectors.

   3. Since, large number of women have occupied high positions in society ,             they are in the position to dominate or govern the will of her male                         subordinates and so sexual abuses or exploitation or rape by her on male         subordinates can not be ruled out

    4. Since, most of the developed countries in the world like US and UK                 amended the rape laws and made it gender neutral, it is incumbent upon the     Parliament in India to make rape law as gender neutral.

    5. Several PILs for making rape laws gender neutral filed in the Supreme             court were rejected. The judges contended that they could not amend the             IPC. It is the prerogative of the parliament to amend the rape laws.

    6. The myth that man can not be raped or sexually assaulted does not hold         water. The idea that man should be able to defend himself against attack             depends upon the different situation.

    7. Any man can be sexually assaulted regardless of size, strength,                         appearance, age, occupation or sexual identity.

If someone throws garbage infront of your house what will you do?

 

If someone throws garbage infront of your house what will you do?

1. Nuisance is anything that annoys or troubles 

2. According to section 268 ipc, a person is guilty of public nuisance who does any act which causes common injury danger or annoyence to the public or to the people in general who dwell or occupy property in the vicinity or which much necessarily cause injury, obstructions, danger, or annoyance to persons who may have occasion to use any public right

3. Nuisance is of two kinds public and private. Keeping a gaming house in the colony or running a brothel is an example of public nuisance. The branches of a tree hanging over the house of another is an example of private nuisance. A private nuisance affects some particular individual. 

4. Spreading infection, adulteration of food or milk, falling the water of any public reservoir, making atmosphere noxious to health are examples of public nuisance

Action under 34 police act, 

1. If anybody commits any of the following offences which causes obstructions, inconvenience, annoyance, risk, danger or damage of the residents or passengers shall on conviction before a magistrate with a fine and also imprisonment for 8 days 

2. Police officer is empowered to  take that person into the custody without any warrant if he is guilty of 

1. Slaughtering of cattle's

2. Furious riding

3. Cruelty to animals

4. Obstructing passenger

5. Exposing goods for sell

6. Throwing dirt/stones/building materials/ rubbish into the streets

7. Being drunk or riotos 

8. Indecent exposure of person

9. Neglect to protect dangerous places

Under section 133 crpc, 

1. DM or SDM or any other magistrate is in power to take action on the police report in following situation

1. Unlawful obstructions or nuisance to any public place or to any way or river or channel lawfully use by the public 

2. Conduct of any trade or occupation, injurious to any health or physical comfort of the community

3. Construction of any building or the disposal of any substance which may cause explosion or conflagration

4. A building, tent or structure or a tree likely to fall or cause injury to persons 

5. An unfence tank, well or excavation near a public place

6. A dangerous animal requiring destruction, confinement or disposal

What law says about public nuisance regarding SC and ST?

1. If a person who is not a member of sc or st acts with the intend to cause injury insult or annoyance to any member of sc or st by dumping excreta, waste matter , carcases or any other obnoxious substances in his premises or neighbourhood shall be punished with the increment of imprisonment of 6 months or which can extend to 5 years.

Private nuisance

1. Interference must be unreasonable or unlawful 

2. There should be visible damage to the property or with the enjoyment with the property in order to constitute a private nuisance

3. Such interference has to be with the use or enjoyment of land 

4. Private nuisance is that kind of nuisance in which a person's use or enjoyment of his property is ruined by another it may also injuriously affect the owner of the property by physical injury to his property or by affecting the enjoyment of that property

What are the remedies available for nuisance ?

1. Injunction - it may be temporary or for limited period or may be permanent injunction

An injunction is a judicial order restraining a person from doing or continuing an act which might be threatening or invading the legal right of another

2. Damages - it may be compensation to the aggrieved party, the court can award damages

Difference between nuisance and trespass

1. Simply entering into another individual’s property without the consent of the owner is called trespass whereas if there is an injury to the property of another or any interference with his enjoyment of the property then it will amount to a nuisance

For eg - planting a tree in someone’s land would amount to trespass whereas if a person plant a tree on their own land which then outgrows to the land of another would amount to nuisance

Conclusion

1. There are ample remedies available in crpc, ipc, torts and police regulations 

2. Since people in our country are not aware of these laws, they do not take recourse to remedies through these laws. Watch Full Video Here

 Why did the government ban the Popular Front of India?

1. Central government last night banned PFI for 5 years over alleged terror activities

2. Along with PFI, student Islamic movement of India (SIMI), Jamaat Ul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and Islamic states of Iraq and Syria were also banned

3. Along with PFI, its other subsidiary organisations have also been banned. These are Rehab India foundation, Campus front of India, All India Imam Council, National confederation of human rights organisations, National Women Front, Junior Front, Empower India Foundation 

4. Government said that PFI is involved in several criminal and terror cases. It has become the major threat to internal security of the country

5. Home Ministry said that PFI has been involved in violent acts like chopping of limb of a college professor and cold blooded killing of people associated with organisations espousing other faiths

6. Several criminal activities and brutal murders have been committed by the PFI members over the past years to create reign of terror in public mind 

7. PFI and its affiliates have been indulging in unlawful activities, prejudicial to the integrity , sovereignty and security of the country and that they have the potential to disturb public peace and communal harmony

8. The Home Ministry says that PFI has been pursuing a secret agenda to radicalise a particular section of the society. That the outfit shows sheer disrespect towards the constitutional authority of the country

9.  The 3 states Karnataka, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh have recommended a ban on the organisation 

Government Action

1. On 22nd September, NIA, ED, and state police raided PFI leaders and functionaries across 15 states, arresting more than 100 persons

2. On 27th September, again the 2nd round of crackdown was carried out on PFI and its affiliates. A total of 247 arrests have been made so far

3. NIA raided Indore arresting 21 persons related to PFI.

4. MP state chief of SDPI,(Social Democratic Party of India, a subsidiary of PFI) Abdul Rauf Belim was arrested from Bhopal on 27th of September 2022

5. The NIA, so far registered 19 PFI related cases, charge sheeted 355 people and secured the conviction of 46 persons

6. NIA has accused PFI of instigating vulnerable youth to join banned terror outfits such as Al Qaida and ISIS 

What is PFI?

1. PFI was formed to counter Hindutva groups and engages in a radical and exclusivist style of Muslim minority politics 

2. It was founded in 2006, with the merger of Karnataka forum of dignity and National Development front

3. Its purpose is to establish Islamic rule in India, Muslim Political mobilization and countering Hindu Nationalism.

4. It describes itself as a neo social movement committed to empower people to ensure justice, freedom and security.

5. It advocates for Muslim reservation. It protested against the alleged use of UAPA to detain innocent citizens 

6. It is basically a resurrection of the banned terrorist outfit SIMI. 

7. PFI has been accused of having links with terrorist organisations such Taliban and Al Qaida

8. PFI activist have been found with lethal weapons bomb, gun powder, swords 

9. PFI has been in violent clashes with RSS in parts of Kerala and Karnataka

10. In 2012 Kerala government informed Kerala HC that PFI had active involvement in 27 murder cases mostly of cadres of CPIM and RSS

11. Contrary to its claim to be non religious in character, the PFI is often found to deploy radical Islamic identity for grassroot mobilisation and has been accused of engaging in a series of violent incidents

12. In 2020, some PFI members were arrested for their alleged role in inciting people during the Delhi riots

13.  The outfit also faces the charge of raising money domestically and overseas to fund its operations 

Why is the PFI - SDPI axis increasing by leaps and bounds ?

1. It has got now 4 lakhs members throughout India

1. Insecurity among Muslims 

2. Sense of deprivation because of Hindutva aggression 

3. Political alienation of Muslims on account of majoritarian governance by BJP RSS combined. Politically Muslims have become redundant. Their representation in Parliament and state assemblies has become minimum

4. Kerala is its cradle and launchpad for its activities

Conclusion

1. Government must act against radicalism of all kinds. 

2. Government agencies like CBI, ED and State Police must stop communal hate speech and stringent action must be taken

3. Conviction rate in communal violence at 20% under section 153 A, ipc, must be raised

4. The PFI continuously invokes the constitution, democratic values and rule of law but all that can not camouflage the violence in its action and speech as unleashed in Kerala last week

5. Only by adopting constitutionally mandated secularism, socialism, democratic system pervading political, social and economic justice would save India from radicalization of its society and polity Watch Full Video here

पुलिस का Dog Squad कितना कारगर होता है ? How far police tracking dog is effective ?

 पुलिस का Dog Squad कितना कारगर होता है? How far police tracking dog is effective?

पुलिस चोरो को कैसे पकड़ती है ?

How far police tracking dog is effective?

1. Tracking dog is used for detection of crime which is committed by unknown person

2. Explosive and mine identification 

3. Detection of human waste materials

4. Search and rescue missions 

5. Locating drugs

6. Finding dead body

7. Distinguishing between different forms of narcotics 

8. To disperse crowd in Australia 

Success rate of dog squad 

1. Age

2. Sex (male dogs are more effective in determining a trail than a female dogs)

3. The personality of dog

4. Its repo with dig handler

5. After the incident, the dog squad should be pressed into service as soon as possible. Delay will reduced success rate

6. If after the incident, it rained in and around the scene of crime then dog squad become not so effective in tracking  the culprit

7. If a big river or rivulate come in between the tracking route, dog squad fails to track further and fails to achieve the target

How does the dog track?

1. It is believed that the feet secrete more scent from an individual. These scent spread into air and also on ground 

2. The footprint left by suspect on vegetation, mud, soil get scent left by the suspect

3. The tracks scent often a mixture of both the air scent and the ground scent being left by the suspect

4. Dogs are able to determine a track scent by identifying the a combination of human odour and environmental odours released by an individual

What are popular police dog breeds?

1. German shepherd

2. Bloodhounds 

3. Belgian malinois 

4. Labrador

5. Doberman

6. Beagle

Training

1. Dog handler has to undergo required police training for 1 to 2 years and thereafter he is trained for dog handling

2. A dog is trained for more than 1 year

3. A dog must pass basic obedience training course before he can be consider for police department

4. After experience and achievement police dog is also ranked

Evidentiary value of dog tracking 

1. Dog tracking of a criminal is relevant fact under section 8 of evidence act

2.  But it is weak evidence and to get the culprit punished, there must be supportive evidence to prove the guilt beyond reasonable doubt

Conclusion

1. It has been found that tracking by dog has success rate of more than 70% provided that it should be used immediately after the incident 

Watch Full Video Here