Telangana HC Acquits Man in Murder Case Due to Hostile Evidence

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court said that while dealing with criminal cases, when the evidence became hostile, courts were not expected to form their opinion on the basis of assumptions and imagination.

This was especially so in the case of murder where the consequence of finding someone guilty was sending that person to jail for life; guild should be proved beyond reasonable, the High Court noted.

Justice K. Surender of Telangana High Court was dealing with criminal appeal filed by Eddagundela Pochaiah, who was found guilty of murdering his mother and causing disappearance of evidence and sentenced to life imprisonment by the VI Additional District and Sessions Judge at Siddipet.

Pochaiah filed a criminal appeal before the High Court.

The case of the prosecution was that he tried to make the murder look like a case of suicide. Before the trial court, the complainant and alleged witnesses turned hostile. Moreover, the complainant stated that he did not lodge a complaint.

The only evidence that formed the basis for conviction by the trial court was that of the doctor who performed the post-mortem and the investigating officer. The doctor stated that he could not say whether the death was homicidal or suicidal.

As the witnesses turned hostile and there were no eye witnesses, the High Court acquitted Pochaiah.