ARVIND @ PAPPU versus STATE (DELHI ADMINISTRATION)

Citation: [1999] 2 S.C.R. 1217 · Decided: 10-05-1999 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: K.T. THOMAS · Disposal: Dismissed

Judgment (excerpt)

ARVIND @ PAPPU 
A 
"" 
v. 
STATE (DELHI ADMINISTRATION) 
MAY 10, 1999 
[K.T. THOMAS AND D.P. MOHAPATRA, JJ.] 
B 
Indian Penal Code, 1860-Section 302-Murder-Circumstantial 
evidence-Standard of proof required-Held, the chain of evidence furnished 
by the circumstances relied in support of the conviction must be so complete c 
as not to leave any reasonable ground for a conclusion consistent with the 
innocence of the accused-Prosecution bringing on record the different 
circumstances pointing to the involvement of the appellant in the killing of 
-
the deceased viz. the enmity of the deceased with the accused as a result of 
their past litigation; accused giving the lure of a job to the deceased in order 
to persuade the deceased to accompany him; accused taking the deceased D 
to his factory and being last seen with the deceased; the conduct of the 
accused in absconding and not being in the factory on the morning when 
the body of the deceased was found-Held, the circumstances taken 
cumulatively point to the only hypothesis of guilt of the appellant and are 
within the parameters of the standard of proof required to convict a person 
on circumstantial evidence-There is no material on record pointing towards E 
... 
the innocence of the accused-Sentence awarded to the accused for the 
offence of murder by the Sessions Court as corifirmed by the High Court-
Calls for no interference. 
The appellant killed the deceased, his co-villager as a result of an old 
enmity between their respective families. The deceased at the material time F 
was employed in a factory where another co-villager PW 8 used to work. A 
day before the date of occurrence, the appellant paid a visit to the house of 
PW 8 where the deceased was also putting up. The appellant persuaded the 
deceased to come with him promising him a job as driver. Before leaving, 
they had seen off PW 9, nephew of the deceased at the bus stand. The 
appellant took the deceased in the business premises of a firm in which the G 
-;:,,r 
appellant was having business interest. He introduced the deceased to the 
employees working on the premises as his friend. The deceased was under 
the influence of liquor. With a view to make arrangement for putting him 
to rest, the appellant asked the other employees to stop working and leave 
the room. A temporary bed was made on the cutter's table lying in the room H 
1217 
1218 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS 
[1999] 2 S.C.R. 
A and the deceased was made to sleep on it. On being asked by the appellant, 
the workers left the room leaving the appellant and the deceased together 
in the room. On the next morning, when PW 2 went to the room he found 
the deceased lying in a pool of blood with a cut injury on his neck, a pair 
of blood stained scissors and a tape· stained with blood lying near the body 
B and blood stains at different places in the room. The appellant was found 
missing from the premises. The appellant remained untraced for about one 
and a half years after the incident when he surrendered after the case was 
committed to the Sessions court and warrant was issued for his arrest. 
The prosecution brought on record the different circumstances leading 
C to the death of the deceased, through the workers engaged in the business 
premises where the deceased was killed. Ttie Additional Sessions judge after 
detailed scrutiny of the evidence found the appellflnt guilty of the offence of 
murder punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced 
him. On appeal, the High Court confirmed the sentence. Hence the present 
D appeal 
Dismissing the appeal, the Court 
HELD : 1. The assessment of the evidence by the Courts below does 
not suffer from any serious infirmity. The circumstances relied upon by the 
E prosecution have been established by the evidence of the workers in the 
factory where the deceased was killed and the evidence of nephew of the 
deceased PW 9. On the facts and circumstances of the case the presence of 
these witnesses at the place of occurrence at the relevant time was natural. 
They had no axe to grind against the appellant. There is no reason why they 
should give false evidence against him. From their evidence the circumstances 
F pointing to the involvement of the appellant in the killing of the deceased 
have definitely been established. Further the appellant was untraced from the 
day following the incident for about one and half years. The circumstances 
taken cumulatively point to the only hy

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