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Acquitted After 37 Years: Murder Conviction Overturned
19 Feb
Summary
- High court overturned a life sentence from a 1987 murder case.
- The court cited anomalies in the trial court's 37-year-old judgment.
- The accused was ordered to be set free if not wanted in other cases.
The Allahabad high court has acquitted an individual who had been serving a life sentence for a 1987 murder in Farrukhabad. The court identified critical flaws in the trial court's judgment, which was delivered on May 17, 1989, stating it suffered from infirmities and should be set aside. This decision came after an appeal was filed by Khunni Lal.
Justices Siddhartha Varma and Prashant Mishra-I noted that two co-accused were acquitted based on the same evidence that led to Khunni Lal's conviction. The trial court had previously acquitted Bhagwan Din and Jagdish, while convicting only Khunni.
On February 18, the high court directed Khunni Lal's immediate release if he was not required in any other case. The original incident stemmed from a property dispute where Khunni Lal and two others allegedly encroached on land belonging to the complainant, Ram Singh. The dispute escalated on May 9, 1987, when the accused destroyed Ram Singh's platform, leading to a fatal attack on Ram Singh's brother, Mauji.
