State vs Wali Ullah alias Qismat Ullah Ss — 2025 MLD 438 PESHAWAR-HIGH-COURT

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State VS Wali Ullah alias Qismat Ullah Ss. 302(b) & 34---Criminal Procedure Code (V of 1898), S.417---Qatl-i-amd, common intention---Appreciation of evidence---Appeal against acquittal---Site plan not supporting ocular account---Defective investigation---Accused was charged that he along with his co-accused committed murder of parents of complainant---From the site plan, prepared at the instance of the complainant, it appeared that the houses of both the parties were adjacent to each other---Points at which mother of complainant was hit, the places at which both the accused were present and the place at which complainant was present, were pointed out, but the place at which father of complainant was present and hit, was not shown---No evidence was collected by the Investigating Officer in respect of the deceased/father of complainant whose dead body was allegedly shifted by the accused party forcibly from the spot and buried---Investigating Officer made no application to the Judicial Magistrate for exhumation of dead body of father of complainant---In the site plan, the deceased mother of complainant was shown to have been present in front of the wall between the houses of the parties---Allegedly, mother of complainant was present at a point, near the wall separating the said two houses---Respondent/accused was shown at another point while firing at his mother---However, it was natural that the wall would have been hit with the fire shots, but, the Investigating Officer stated in his cross-examination that no marks of bullets strike were founds on the said wall---Circumstances established that the prosecution had failed to bring home guilt against the respondent/accused---Appeal against acquittal was dismissed accordingly. Citation Name: 2025 MLD 438 PESHAWAR-HIGH-COURTBookmark this Case State VS Wali Ullah alias Qismat Ullah Double presumption of innocence---Scope---acquittal at trial gives rise to double presumption of innocence for an accused---an appellate Court needs to be cautious while considering the evidence and should avoid reversal of an acquittal, unless it finds that the acquittal was perverse, conjectural, arbitrary, jurisdictionally defective and was prompted by mis-reading or non-reading of evidence---Even if a contrary view is formed on re-appraisal of evidence, it should not be used to disturb an acquittal, provided convincing evidence is available on the record to reverse acquittal. Citation Name: 2025 MLD 438 PESHAWAR-HIGH-COURTBookmark this Case State VS Wali Ullah alias Qismat Ullah Ss. 302(b) & 34---Criminal Procedure Code (V of 1898), S.417---Qatl-i-amd, common intention---Appreciation of evidence---Appeal against acquittal---Delay of 18 hours in lodging FIR not plausibly explained---Accused was charged that he along with his co-accused committed murder of parents of complainant---Land dispute between father of complainant and accused was motive of the occurrence---Incident took place at 04.00 pm while complainant reported it to the police on the next day at 10.30 am with a delay of about 18 hours---As per statement of complainant, he lodged the report in the civil hospital, at which time he had shifted the dead body of his mother---Report of the incident showed that at the relevant time accused and his co-accused entered the house of the complainant party---In the first report of the incident recorded in the shape of the murasila, the complainant explained the delay by stating that public transport was not available on the eventful day, whereas during cross-examination, complainant changed his stance, stating that curfew was imposed in the area---Investigating Officer collected no evidence, either regarding non-availability of transport or curfew in the locality---Complainant stated that the Police Station was situated at a short distance from his house where one could reach within half-an-hour---Complainant also stated that he went to the village of his maternal uncles to arrange a vehicle for shifting the dead body of his mother to the hospital, however, complainant did not approach the Police Station---On the face of the record, the long delay in lodging the report was not convincingly explained---It did not appeal to a prudent mind that complainant waited till the next day late in the morning to lodge the report in the civil hospital situated at a long distance from his village, particularly while Police Station, as per his own version, was situated at a short distance from the place of occurrence---Circumstances established that the prosecution had failed to bring home guilt against the respondent/accused---Appeal against acquittal was dismissed accordingly.

State vs Wali Ullah alias Qismat Ullah Ss — 2025 MLD 438 PESHAWAR-HIGH-COURT

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