Calcutta High Court Overturns Life Sentence in 2008 Child Rape-Murder Case
In a significant legal development, the Calcutta High Court has acquitted Sk Jahangir, a man from East Midnapore, who was previously sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017 for the rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl. The acquittal, delivered on February 5, came after the prosecution failed to establish his involvement in the crime, highlighting critical gaps in the evidence presented during the trial.
Court Criticizes Prosecution's Failure to Link Accused to Crime
The bench of Justices Rajasekhar Mantha and Ajay Kumar Gupta observed that had Jahangir committed the crime, he would not have informed the parents that he last saw the girl at the market. "He would have made every endeavour to disassociate himself from the victim," the judges noted. They further emphasized that while the accused last saw the victim, he was not last seen with her, undermining the prosecution's narrative.
The parents testified that Jahangir told them the child had been seen loitering and crying in the local market a day before she went missing. However, the court pointed out that there were no eyewitnesses linking Jahangir to the crime. A glaring lapse in the investigation was the failure to match Jahangir's semen sample with biological evidence from the victim's body, and no forensic science laboratory report was exhibited during the trial.
Background of the Case and Initial Conviction
The case dates back to March 3, 2008, when the seven-year-old girl went missing after playing near Jahangir's house in Golghat village. Her body was later recovered from the Kansa River. Initially, the family did not suspect foul play, but during the last rites, a relative noticed bruises and blood on her private parts, prompting a police complaint.
The body was exhumed for an inquest and post-mortem examination in Tamluk, which revealed multiple cut injuries, blood in her nose and mouth, and injuries to her private parts. The post-mortem report confirmed rape and stated the cause of death as asphyxia, shock, and hemorrhage, with injuries noted on seven parts of the body.
In August 2017, a court in East Midnapore convicted Jahangir and sentenced him to life imprisonment, also directing him to pay Rs 50,000 in compensation to the victim's family. The victim's father had filed a complaint naming two persons—Sk Akkas and Sk Jahangir—as responsible. Sk Akkas was granted bail and later absconded.
Defense Arguments and Court's Final Observations
The defense argued that the police recovered the child's clothing from the house of the absconding accused, Sk Akkas, suggesting alternative suspects. The court noted that no medical evidence beyond the post-mortem report was produced, and there was no established link between Jahangir and the offence. "The post-mortem report indicates that the victim was raped. The same, however, by itself does not link the appellant with the victim," the judge observed, underscoring the insufficiency of evidence for conviction.
This acquittal raises questions about investigative procedures and the burden of proof in criminal cases, emphasizing the need for robust evidence to secure convictions in heinous crimes.
