M A I N   N E W S

Haryana MLA acquitted in murder case
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 1
In a complete reversal of events, a Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today acquitted Haryana MLA Nafe Singh and another accused sentenced to life imprisonment in a murder case by Jhajjar’s Additional District and Sessions Judge.

Pronouncing the orders, the Bench, comprising Mr Justice H.S. Bedi and Mr Justice A.S. Garg, also reduced the sentence of certain other accused in the case from seven years to five years.

The Judges also directed the filing of a complaint under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code against certain prosecution witnesses who had filed affidavits during the pendency of the appeal stating that they had made false statements during the trial.

Nafe Singh and others were earlier booked by the Haryana Police for murder, rioting and other offences under Sections 302, 307, 323, 325, 148 and 452 of the IPC and the Arms Act after Jairaj Singh succumbed to his injuries in September 1993 following a quarrel between two parties over the removal of a ladder from a temple without permission.

The accused, when confronted with the incriminating evidence against them, had denied the allegations before the Additional District and Sessions Judge. Claiming to be innocent, they had asked for a trial.

Arguing before the court, their counsel had stated that the accused were being implicated in the case. The prosecution witnesses were family members and belonged to the Congress party, while the accused were of the rival party. The Additional Sessions Judge, while sentencing the accused to life imprisonment, had observed: “Almost all the accused are young. One of them is an MLA. None of them is a previous convict and has been facing trial since 1993. Under these facts and circumstances, I am inclined to take a lenient view against the accused”.