Supreme Court acquits Hoshiarpur man in 27-yr-old case

Satya Prakash

New Delhi, April 19

Holding that the testimonies of witnesses relied by the prosecution were “wholly unreliable”, the Supreme Court has acquitted a man from Hoshiarpur who was sentenced to life imprisonment for allegedly killing a man in 1997.

“Having given our thoughtful consideration to the entirety of the material available on record, we are of the firm view that evidence of Sharan Kaur, prosecution witness (PW) -5, and Daljit Singh (PW-6) is wholly unreliable and does not inspire confidence in the court so as to affirm the conviction of the appellant,” a Bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice Sandeep Mehta said, acquitting Kirpal Singh.

The verdict came on an appeal filed by accused Kirpal Singh challenging the February 28, 2008, judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had confirmed the conviction and sentence imposed on him by the Additional Sessions Judge (Adhoc), Hoshiarpur, on July, 26, 2003.

Kirpal Singh had allegedly stabbed to death one Balwinder Singh and injured his wife Sharan Kaur in the intervening night of 12th/13th November, 1997, in Hoshiarpur district

of Punjab.