Hyderabad: Trial judge catches big error, acquits 5

Hyderabad: Based on forensic evidence, a trial court has acquitted all five persons accused in a murder case.

The Fifth Additional District and Sessions Judge Court at Tirupati had acquitted S. Chandra Reddy and four others in 2009 of killing Chandra Reddy’s wife Radha on the grounds that the prosecution had failed to prove their guilt. They were charged under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

The SR Puram police of Chittoor district had accused Chandra Reddy and his four relatives of killing Radha due to a family dispute which had forced them to return her dowry, which included jewellery and property, to her parents.

The police alleged that the five accused forcibly administered liquor mixed with mercury and insecticide (Monocr-otophos) to the deceased and when she tried to resist them, two of the accused caught hold of her and Chandra Reddy pressed a pillow firmly on her face till she died.

The autopsy’s preliminary finding was that the death was suggestive of asphyxia due to obstruction to the air passage.

The police, while submitting the preliminary charge sheet based on the preliminary finding of the post-mortem, informed the trial court that the final charge sheet will be filed on receipt of the final medical opinion as to the cause of death, and on the report of forensic experts.

The forensic report held that the deceased could have died of Monocrotophos, a poisonous insecticide, and mercury metallic poison along with Ethyl alcohol.

The trial court judge inquired with the doctor who conducted the post-mortem about the corrosive damage that consumption of mercury would cause as mercury is a corrosive substance and causes damage to the lips, mouth, throat and oesophagus.

But there was no mention in the forensic report about the corrosive appearance of the lips, mouth and throat of the deceased.

The trial court held that it cannot fix liability on the accused in the absence of the corrosive effect, and so it cannot be concluded that the accused poured Monocrotophos and mercury into the mouth of the deceased and this killed her.

The AP government appealed before the Hyderabad High Court against the acquittal of the accused and the High Court upheld the trial court order, agreeing with the view of the trial court and also declaring that the trial court has rightly acquitted all the accused of the charge framed against them.