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High Court Affirms Conviction and Life Sentences in a Grievous Cold-Blooded Murder and Body Mutilation Case

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This criminal appeal challenged the judgment and order dated May 2, 1989, passed by the Vth Additional District and Sessions Judge, Moradabad, which convicted the appellants under Sections 302, 201, and 324/34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), sentencing them to life imprisonment. The prosecution’s case was that on September 27, 1987, at around 09:45 PM, the appellants—armed with guns and a country-made pistol—fatally shot the victim, Ram Kunwar, while he was returning home from a Ramayana recitation at the village temple. The assailants then dragged away the body, severed the head to destroy evidence, and terrorized witnesses. The Allahabad High Court, upon re-evaluating the ocular testimony, medical evidence, and established personal enmity regarding an elopement case, held that the prosecution successfully proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt. Consequently, the High Court dismissed the appeals, upheld the conviction and life sentences, and ordered the appellants to surrender.

  • Factual Matrix & Prosecution Story:
    • On September 27, 1987, at 09:45 PM, informant Rohtash Singh @ Chhotey (PW-1) along with his brother Ram Kunwar (deceased) and father Ramphal Singh were returning home after listening to the Akhand Ramayan Path in the village temple.
    • As they reached near the outer wall of Khairati’s house, accused Mahesh, Naresh @ Chhotey, Virpal, and Balistor surrounded Ram Kunwar. Mahesh, Virpal, and Naresh were armed with guns, while Balistor carried a country-made pistol.
    • Mahesh, Virpal, and Naresh fired multiple gunshots at Ram Kunwar, causing him to fall and die on the spot, while Balistor threatened eyewitnesses with his pistol.
    • The accused dragged the body away, fired in the air (causing injury to an injured bystander, Km. Veerum), and made the body disappear. The headless body was recovered six days later on October 4, 1987, from a sugarcane field in Majholi.
  • Trial Court Proceedings:
    • An FIR (Case Crime No. 287 of 1987) was promptly registered at Police Station Kundarki, District Moradabad, under Sections 302 and 201 IPC.
    • Following an investigation, a chargesheet was filed, and the trial court framed charges under Sections 302, 201, 324, and 324/34 IPC against the appellants.
    • On May 2, 1989, the trial court convicted the appellants, sentencing them to life imprisonment with a fine of Rs. 2,000 under Section 302, two years’ rigorous imprisonment under Section 201, and one year’s rigorous imprisonment under Section 324/34 IPC.
  • Appellants’ Submissions:
    • Counsel for the appellants argued that there was a delay in lodging the FIR, that all eyewitnesses were closely related family members of the deceased, and that material contradictions existed in their statements.
    • It was further contended that the appellants had no motive to commit the crime and that the findings of the trial court were based on surmises and conjectures.
  • High Court’s Observations & Legal Analysis:
    • Prompt FIR and Natural Testimony: The High Court noted that the incident occurred at 09:45 PM and the written report was lodged at 02:00 AM, with the police station located only six kilometers away, indicating no undue delay or deliberation.
    • Credibility of Related Witnesses: Citing Supreme Court precedents such as State of Rajasthan v. Smt. Kalki and Laxmanna v. Andhra Pradesh, the Court reiterated that a witness’s relationship to a victim does not render them “interested” or untrustworthy if their presence is natural and their testimony remains consistent.
    • Inaction of Witnesses: The Court justified the failure of unarmed bystanders and relatives to physically intervene, noting that human instinct under sudden life-threatening circumstances involving armed assailants dictates self-preservation, which cannot invalidate truthful ocular testimony.
    • Motive Established: The prosecution successfully proved a strong motive: the deceased, Ram Kunwar, was implicated in eloping with Suman, the sister of accused Mahesh, leading to prior criminal cases and bitter enmity.
    • Medical Corroboration: The post-mortem report (Exhibit Ka-19) confirmed four gunshot entry wounds and severe mutilation injuries, directly corroborating the eye-witness accounts.
  • Final Judgment:
    • Finding no perversity or illegality in the trial court’s appraisal of evidence, the High Court dismissed the criminal appeals and affirmed the judgment and conviction.
    • The appellants (Balistor, Mahesh, and Naresh) who were on bail had their bonds cancelled, and were directed to surrender before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Moradabad, within fifteen days to serve their sentence.

J.O. (Web) 2026 ALL 43

Balistor Versus State of U.P. (D.O.J.01.07.2026)

J.O. (Web) 2026 ALL 43 click here to view full text of judgment

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Supreme Court Judgment Summary 15th Sep, 2026

September 18, 2026 No Comments

Supreme Court Judgment Summary 15th Sep, 2026

A Definitive Review on Disability Pension Rights for Ex-Servicemen

This landmark batch of appeals brought by the Union of India challenged various orders passed by the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) and High Courts, which had granted the disability element of service pensions to ex-servicemen. These former personnel had been assessed by Release Medical Boards (RMB) as having disabilities that were “Neither Attributable Nor Aggravated” (NANA) by military service. The Supreme Court addressed the core tension between the protective, beneficial jurisprudence established in Dharamvir Singh v. Union of India (governed by the Entitlement Rules 1982) and the restrictive framework introduced by the subsequent Entitlement Rules 2008. Crucially, the Court undertook a deep constitutional and administrative review of the legitimacy of the 2008 rules, evaluating whether they possessed binding legal force and whether they could dilute established beneficial entitlements.

2026 INSC 993 : Union of India & Ors. v. Col. NC Isaac (Retd.) and Connected Appeals (D.O.J. 15.09.2026)

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Setting Aside Ineligible Selection to Protect Merit

September 18, 2026 No Comments

The Supreme Court of India dismissed the civil appeal filed by Sunita Lahu Panchpande, upholding the Bombay High Court’s judgment that had set aside her appointment as an Anganwadi Supervisor in Nashik District. The appellant, who originally served as an Anganwadi Sevika in Jalgaon District, applied for and was appointed to the post in Nashik despite an express restriction in the advertisement and the governing Government Resolution (G.R.) dated November 17, 2001, mandating that applicants must possess ten years of work experience specifically within Nashik District. Although the Divisional Commissioner had erroneously issued a clarification stating that experience from other districts was acceptable, the Supreme Court ruled that a subordinate administrative official cannot issue clarifications contrary to statutory G.R.s and recruitment advertisements. Citing the doctrine that appointments made in disregard of advertised qualifications amount to a fraud on the public, the Supreme Court affirmed the High Court’s order directing the appointment of the eligible wait-listed candidate (the sixth respondent) in her place, while acknowledging the compassionate observation permitting the appellant’s accommodation in her home district.

  • Core Issues Addressed: The Supreme Court evaluated whether a candidate lacking the mandatory territorial work experience stipulated in a recruitment advertisement and government resolution can retain public employment based on an erroneous administrative clarification.
  • Mandatory Territorial Eligibility: A conjoint reading of the 2001 Government Resolution and the specific conditions of the advertisement clearly established that applicants must have accumulated their ten years of qualifying experience as an Anganwadi Sevika within the same district (Nashik).
  • Incompetence of Administrative Clarifications: The Divisional Commissioner lacked the legal authority to issue a clarification that ran completely contrary to the explicit text of the 2001 G.R.; any genuine doubt ought to have been referred back to the State Government.
  • Fraud on Public Aspirants: Reaffirming the principle laid down in Tripura Sundari Devi, the Court emphasized that appointing ineligible candidates in violation of advertised terms without an express relaxation clause constitutes a fraud on public candidates who possessed better qualifications but refrained from applying.
  • Final Outcome: The appeal was dismissed, the High Court’s judgment was upheld, the sixth respondent was awarded the rightful appointment with benefits to be disbursed within two months, and the appellant was granted time until September 30, 2026, to transition out of the post.

2026 INSC 1002

Sunita Lahu Panchpande v. The District Collector & Ors. (D.O.J. 16.09.2026)

2026 INSC 1002 click here to view full text of judgment

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Acquittal Under NDPS Act Due to Flawed Sampling and Unproven Contraband

September 18, 2026 No Comments

The Supreme Court of India allowed the criminal appeals filed by the appellants Abdul Rajik and Govind, setting aside the concurrent judgments of the Trial Court and the High Court of Madhya Pradesh which had convicted them under Section 8 read with Section 20 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. The appellants had been sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for 10 years and 8 years respectively, following allegations that they were caught carrying charas. The Supreme Court held that the prosecution fundamentally failed to establish an unbroken chain of custody for the seized samples, pointing out severe lapses, including the total non-compliance with Section 52-A of the NDPS Act (drawing samples without a Magistrate), missing entries in the malkhana register regarding the exit of samples, a silent carrier constable, and an unexplained five-day delay before the samples reached the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL). Consequently, the FSL report became untrustworthy, and with no other reliable scientific proof that the recovered material was actually charas, the Court granted the appellants the benefit of the doubt and acquitted them.

  • Core Issues Addressed: The Supreme Court examined the validity of convictions under the NDPS Act concerning the integrity of link evidence, the absolute necessity of maintaining a secure chain of custody for seized contraband samples, and the legal consequences of failing to comply with Section 52-A of the NDPS Act.
  • Breach in Link Evidence and Custody: The prosecution failed to prove the safe transit of the samples from the malkhana to the FSL. Crucially, the forwarding letter from the Superintendent of Police was dated December 1, 2004, whereas the FSL recorded receipt on December 6, 2004, leaving an unexplained five-day gap with zero evidence as to whose custody the samples remained in during this period.
  • Non-Compliance with Section 52-A: The investigating officer completely omitted the mandatory statutory safeguard of drawing representative samples in the presence of an Executive or Judicial Magistrate, which severely dented the integrity of the seizure and sampling process.
  • Exclusion of the FSL Report: Due to the shattered chain of custody and procedural flaws, the FSL report (Exhibit P-46) lost its evidentiary value and had to be discarded. Furthermore, the informal spot-testing method (burning a small piece of the substance) was deemed unscientific and insufficient to prove the material was charas.
  • Final Outcome: The appeals were allowed, the judgments of conviction and sentences were set aside, and the appellants were acquitted of all charges with their bail bonds discharged.

2026 INSC 1001

Abdul Rajik v. State of M.P. (D.O.J. 16.09.2026)

2026 INSC 1001 click here to view full text of judgment

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The Finality of Tax Settlements: Barring Reassessment After ITSC Orders

September 18, 2026 No Comments

The Supreme Court of India dismissed the civil appeal filed by the Revenue (Income Tax Department), upholding the judgment of the Delhi High Court which had quashed a reassessment notice and order issued against the respondent-assessee, M/s. Omaxe Limited. The core controversy revolved around whether the Assessing Officer (AO) retained the jurisdiction to reopen a concluded assessment under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, to disallow housing project deductions under Section 80IB(10) after the Income Tax Settlement Commission (ITSC) had already passed a final settlement order under Section 245D(4). The Supreme Court ruled that Chapter XIX-A of the Income Tax Act is a self-contained code. Once an application for settlement is admitted and a final order is issued, it attains absolute finality under Section 245-I, and the regular assessment machinery cannot be invoked to bypass this conclusiveness. The Court clarified that if the Revenue wishes to challenge a settlement order on grounds of fraud or misrepresentation, its sole exclusive remedy is to approach the ITSC directly under Section 245D(6)—not to initiate parallel reassessment proceedings.

  • Core Issue Addressed: The Supreme Court examined whether an Assessing Officer can independently issue a reassessment notice under Section 148 to disallow deductions (such as under Section 80IB(10)) that were part of the total income considerations during a concluded proceeding before the Settlement Commission.
  • Exclusive Jurisdiction of the ITSC: The Court reaffirmed that upon the admission of a settlement application, the ITSC assumes exclusive jurisdiction over the case for that assessment year, placing the regular assessment machinery under statutory abeyance pursuant to Section 245F(2).
  • Conclusiveness of Settlement Orders: Under Section 245-I, orders passed by the ITSC under Section 245D(4) are final and conclusive on the matters stated therein, barring the Revenue from splitting an assessment to re-litigate items through standard reassessment channels.
  • Exclusive Remedy for Fraud or Misrepresentation: If the Revenue discovers that a settlement order was obtained through misrepresentation or concealment, Section 245D(6) provides the exclusive statutory pathway to declare the settlement void by moving the ITSC directly, a route the Revenue unsuccessfully attempted and exhausted in this very case.
  • Final Outcome: The appeal filed by the Revenue was dismissed, confirming that the regular tax authorities cannot initiate parallel reassessments once an ITSC settlement order has attained finality.

2026 INSC 1000

Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax & Another v. M/s. Omaxe Limited (D.O.J. 16.09.2026)

2026 INSC 1000 click here to view full text of judgment

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