STATE OF GUJARAT v. VINAYAKBHAI BHAUSAHEB KAVLANEKAR

R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD R/CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 840 of 2001 FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA

and

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE R. T. VACHHANI

========================================================== Approved for Reporting Yes No ========================================================== STATE OF GUJARAT Versus VINAYAKBHAI BHAUSAHEB KAVLANEKAR & ORS.

========================================================== Appearance:

MR RONAK RAVAL, APP for the Appellant(s) No. 1 ADVOCATE NOTICE SERVED for the Opponent(s)/Respondent(s) No. 1 MR BM MANGUKIYA(437) for the Opponent(s)/Respondent(s) No. 2,3,4,5,6 MS BELA A PRAJAPATI(1946) for the Opponent(s)/Respondent(s) No.

2,3,4,5,6

========================================================== CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE R. T. VACHHANI Date: 04/02/2026 ORAL JUDGMENT (PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE R. T. VACHHANI)

1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the judgment and order of acquittal dated 31.07.2001 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Ahmedabad Rural in Sessions Case No.127 of 1996, whereby the respondents-accused came to be acquitted for the offences punishabl e under Sections 143, 147, 148, 149, 302, 323 and 504 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 135(1) of the Bombay Police Act, the appellant – Sta te has preferred the present appeal under Section 378 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (“the Code” for short).

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R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 2. The brief facts leading to the filing of the present appeal a re as under:

2.1. The complainant, who is the nephew of the deceased, lodged a complaint alleging that on 28.02.1996 at about 21:00 hours, while proceeding with the deceased and his wife to attend a condolence at a relative's place, a dispute arose over parking of a vehicle obstruc ting the path near bungalow No.64 in K.K. Nagar Society, Ghatlodiya, Ahmedabad. It was alleged that the respondents assaulted the decea sed with fists and blows, and respondent No.1 struck the deceased on t he head with a stone, leading to injuries from which the deceased succumbed. The complainant and the deceased's wife also claimed to have been assaulted. The complaint was registered under the aforementioned sections at Ghatlodiya Police Station, bearing CR No.I - 70/1996. After investigation, a charge sheet was filed before the C hief Judicial Magistrate, Ahmedabad Rural, registered as Criminal Case No.1796/1996.

2.2. As the Chief Judicial Magistrate lacked jurisdiction to try the offence under Section 302 IPC, the case was committed to the Ses sions Court, Ahmedabad Rural vide order dated 05.08.1996 and registered as Sessions Case No.127/1996 for trial. Upon conclusion of the prosecution evidence, the learned Sessions Court put various incriminating circumstances appearing in the evidence to the respondent-accused f or their explanation under Section 313 of the Code. In their further statements, the respondent-accused denied all the incriminating circumstances as false and stated that they are innocent and have been falsely implicated. After examining the oral and documentary e vidence and the submissions from both sides, the learned Sessions Court recor ded a finding in favour of the respondent-accused and acquitted them of all Page 2 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 charges.

3. We have heard the learned advocates for the respective parties and carefully examined the oral and documentary evidence adduced before the learned Sessions Court. During the course of the trial, the pr osecution examined a total of 11 witnesses. The details of the oral and documentary evidence are as under:

~:: Oral Evidence ::~

P.W.

No. Particular Exh.

1. Sumanbhai Ramanlal Kothari 13

2. Dr. Babubhai Ambalal Patel 14

3. Jagdishbhai Narmdashankar 18

4. Ailiyamma Philip 21

5. Anandprakash Rasikbhai Acharya 22

6. Jashodaben Indravadanbhai Acharya 25

7. Dy.S.P. Parmeshwarprasad Sarvajeet 35

8. Dr. Ghanshyambhai Chunilal Patel 37

9. P.S.O. Balabhai Devabhai Parmar 46

10. Jashvantbhai Hartaji 48

11. Dr. Ravindra Shrikrushna Bhinse 28

~:: Documentary Evidence ::~

Sr.

No. Particular Exh.

1. Original Complaint 23

2. Slip regarding rows of bricks 19

3. Panchnama of place of incident 20

4. Yadi from Ghatlodia Police Station 29

5. Reply to yadi from Dr. Desai 30

6. PM Notes 31

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R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 Sr.

No. Particular Exh.

7. Inquest Panchnama 24

8. Panchnama of clothes of deceased 38

9. Charge Frame 26

10. FSL Receipt 27

11. Muddamal dispatch report 28

12. Sketch of place of incident 29

13. Letter to FSL 30

14. FSL Report 31

15. Opinion regarding reasons of death 32 16. Further opinion 30 17. Complaint of Atul Vinayak 36 18. Medical certificate of Anand Rasiklal 38 19. Medical certificate of Atul Vinayak 39 20. Medical certificate of Vinayak Bhavsaheb 40 21. Medical certificate of Jitendra Vinayak 41 22. Telephone vardhi slip 47 4. The learned APP appearing for the appellant – State, submitted that the impugned judgment requires interference, primarily relying upon t he deposition of the complainant examined as (PW-5, Exh.-22) and the deceased's wife as (PW-6, Exh.-25). Their testimonies, according to the prosecution, establish the assault on 28.02.1996 at about 21:00 hours, leading to the death of the deceased due to head injury caused by a stone, as supported by the post-mortem note (Exh.-31). It is not in dispute tha t the deceased suffered a head injury and was declared dead at the spot, as corroborated by the medical evidence of Dr. Babubhai Ambalal Patel (PW-2, Exh.-14). Hence, it was contended that the learned Sessions Court erred in acquitting the accused.

4.1. The learned APP further submitted that the evidence of other Page 4 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 material witnesses corroborates the prosecution case and, therefore, the acquittal warrants interference and conviction of the respondent-accused.

5. The learned Advocate for the respondent-accused Nos.2 to 6 submitted that the impugned judgment does not call for any interference .

He contended that the testimonies of the complainant (PW-5, Exh.-22)

and the deceased's wife (PW-6, Exh.-25) are unreliable due to inconsistencies with the medical evidence, as the post-mortem note (Exh.-31) attributes death to natural causes involving cardio-respir atory failure and intra-cerebral hemorrhage following pathology in the brai n and heart. Several witnesses, including Sumanbhai Ramanlal Kothari (PW-1, Exh.-13) and Ailiyamma Philip (PW-4, Exh.-21), turned hostile and did not support the prosecution. It was further submitted that no independent witnesses corroborated the assault, no weapon was recovered matching the injury, and the FSL reports (Exh.-31 and Exh.-32) do not link the accused to the deceased's blood. Hence, in absence of any evidence proved beyond reasonable doubt, the acquittal is justified.

6. Having heard the learned advocates for both sides and perused the depositions of the witnesses, documentary evidence, and the judgment of the Sessions Court, it appears that the testimonies of the complai nant and the deceased's wife, who are the alleged eyewitnesses, lack credibility.

7. The prosecution case is mainly based on the statements of the complainant Anandprakash Rasikbhai Acharya (PW-5, Exh.-22) and the wife of the deceased, Jashodaben Indravadanbhai Acharya (PW-6, Exh.- 25), who are said to be eyewitnesses to the incident. As per the complainant (PW-5, Exh.-22), on 28.02.1996 at about 21:00 hours, while he was going with the deceased and the deceased’s wife to the house of a Page 5 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 relative, an argument took place near bungalow No.64 in K.K. Nagar Society because a parked vehicle was blocking the way. He stated that during this dispute, the accused beat the deceased with fists and blows, and that accused No.1 (Vinayakbhai) hit the deceased on the head wi th a stone, causing injuries that resulted in his death. He also c laimed that he himself was beaten by the accused. However, the learned Sessions Court found his testimony unreliable because it did not match the medical evidence, there was no support from independent witnesses, and there was no proof connecting the alleged weapon to the injury. The lear ned Sessions Court noted that no independent witness supported the allegation of assault, no weapon was recovered that could be clearly connected to the injury, and the FSL reports did not link the accuse d with the blood of the deceased. After re-examining the evidence, we agr ee with the learned Sessions Court. The complainant’s version appears exaggerated, as it does not fit with the postmortem report, which states that the death was due to natural causes and not because of an as sault.

The medical evidence also shows no serious injuries on the body that would normally be expected from a severe beating, which further weakens his version. In simple words, an prudent person would understand that the complainant’s story does not match the doctors’ scientific findings, making it difficult to accept that the accused intentionally caused the death.

8. Likewise, the deceased’s wife Jashodaben Indravadanbhai Acharya (PW-6, Exh.-25) stated that the accused assaulted her husband with fists and blows, and that accused No.1 struck him on the head with a stone, after which he started bleeding and became unconscious. She further stated that her husband fell on a heap of concrete debris and tha t she took a Sorbitrate tablet from his pocket and placed it in his mouth. The learned Sessions Court pointed out inconsistencies in her testimony, especiall y Page 6 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 because the medical evidence did not show fractures or serious inj uries that would be expected from such blows. The court also noted that her act of giving a Sorbitrate tablet indicated that she was aware of her husband’s existing heart condition. The learned Sessions Court further observed t hat no bloodstains were found either at the scene or on her clothes to s upport her claim of bleeding. We agree with this assessment. Although she described the sequence of events, her testimony does not explain how a minor head injury could cause death when the postmortem clearly showed serious brain and heart diseases as the real cause. It appears that her version, possibly influenced by emotional distress, does not prove a direct connection between the alleged assault and the death. In simple terms, her statement does not show that the stone blow caused her husband’s death, especially when doctors concluded that the death was due to natural medical conditions affecting the brain and heart.

9. The medical evidence is the most important part of this case. D r.

Babubhai Ambalal Patel (PW-2, Exh.-14), who was the first doctor to examine the deceased at the spot, stated that when he checked the deceased, there was no pulse, no breathing, and no heartbeat, and he declared the deceased dead at the scene itself. He did not not e any history of assault and initially treated the case as a non-medico-l egal one. The learned Sessions Court rightly observed that if Dr. Babubhai Ambalal Patel (PW-2, Exh.-14) had suspected a homicidal injury, he would have reported it as a medico-legal case as per his duty. We agree with this view. His immediate opinion suggests a sudden natural death rathe r than death caused by injuries from an assault. His evidence also supports the absence of external injuries indicating a violent beating.

10. Dr. Ravindra Shrikrushna Bhinse (PW-11, Exh.-28), Head of the Forensic Department, who examined the postmortem notes, stated t hat Page 7 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 the postmortem revealed only a small abrasion on the head measur ing 1.75 cm x 0.5 cm. He clearly opined that the cause of death was cardio- respiratory failure due to intra-cerebral hemorrhage resulting from disease of the brain and heart. He explained that the deceased had thickened heart walls, narrowing of coronary arteries due to atherosclerosis, and ruptured blood vessels in the brain causing subarachnoid hemorrhage. According to him, the head injury was superficial, not sufficient to cause death, and could have occurred due to a fall on a rough surface such as concre te debris. He further stated that excitement or high blood pressure could trigger such a natural event in a person with these existing health problems. The learned Sessions Court carefully examined this evi dence and concluded that it ruled out homicidal death and clearly pointed to natural causes. After independent consideration, we agree with this conclusion. The expert medical opinion, supported by histopathology reports, clearly establishes that the death occurred due to long-standing heart and brain disease and not because of the alleged stone bl ow. For a prudent person, this means that medical tests proved the deceased died due to his own serious health issues, like a heart problem or brain hemorrhage, and not because someone hit him with enough force to ki ll him.

11. The postmortem report (Exh.-31) and the subsequent medical opinion (Exh.-30) given by Dr. D.S. Desai, who conducted the autopsy, initially kept the cause of death pending histopathology and later confirmed that the death was natural due to the same diseases. The learned Sessions Court noted that the injury found was not sufficient to cause death in the ordinary course and that there was no internal damage such as a skull fracture. We find no error in this assessme nt, as all the medical reports consistently rule out homicide and clearly point to natural death. The fact that no blood was found on the alleged weapon, namel y Page 8 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 the stone recovered from the scene, further supports this conclusion, a s the FSL report (Exh.-31) did not match any blood group with that of t he deceased.

12. Other witnesses also do not support the prosecution case.

Sumanbhai Ramanlal Kothari (PW-1, Exh.-13), who informed the police by telephone, stated that he heard about a quarrel over parking and sa w the dead body of the deceased, but he did not see the assault. He t urned hostile and did not support the prosecution. The learned Sessions Court treated him as hostile and found his testimony useless for proving the alleged assault. We see no reason to disagree, as his evidenc e only shows that a dispute occurred, not that a violent attack caused the death.

13. Ailiyamma Philip (PW-4, Exh.-21), a nurse who tried to massage the chest of the deceased, stated that she saw people gathered and the deceased lying unconscious, but she did not witness the assault and c ould not identify the accused. She also turned hostile. The learned Sess ions Court rejected her evidence due to lack of support. We agree, as her presence after the incident does not help prove the prosecution’s clai m of a deliberate fatal assault.

14. Independent witness Jagdishbhai Narmdashankar (PW-3, Exh.-18), who acted as a panch witness for the scene panchnama, stated t hat a bloodstained stone and other articles were recovered from the plac e of incident. However, the learned Sessions Court observed that the panchnama (Exh.-20) did not record measurements of the debris or the road, and the FSL report did not connect the stone with the blood of the deceased. We agree that this evidence is only circumstantial and does not prove that the stone was used as a murder weapon, especially when the injury could also be caused by a fall.

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R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 15. The Investigating Officer, Dy.S.P. Parmeshwarprasad Sarvajeet (PW-7, Exh.-35), explained the steps taken during investigation, including registration of the FIR, preparation of panchnamas, and sending articles to FSL. During cross-examination, he admitted that he did not collect control soil samples, blood from the scene, or bloodstained clothes of witnesses, and that he did not investigate the heart condition o f the deceased. The learned Sessions Court found these lapses serious and held the investigation to be defective. After reviewing the record, we agree that these omissions are important and they weaken the prosecuti on case by leaving major gaps in proving that the assault caused the death. In simple terms, the police failed to collect important evidence , such as blood samples from the spot, which could have clarified whether the injury was caused by an attack or by a fall.

16. The documentary evidence, including the inquest panchnama (Exh.-24), FSL reports (Exh.-31 and Exh.-32), and medical certificat es of injuries sustained by the accused (Exh.-39, Exh.-40, Exh.-41), shows tha t the accused themselves had injuries, which the prosecution has not explained. The learned Sessions Court therefore inferred that there may have been a mutual scuffle and that the deceased might have colla psed due to his existing health problems. We find this inference rea sonable.

The injuries on the accused indicate that the incident was not a one-sided brutal attack but possibly a minor altercation followed by the deceased’s natural collapse.

17. The appellant-State argued that the learned Sessions Court wrongly ignored the eyewitness accounts and relied too heavily on medical evidence suggesting natural death. However, after considering the enti re material on record, we find that the learned Sessions Court adopte d a Page 10 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 balanced and reasoned approach. The medical evidence clearly and strongly points to natural causes such as pre-existing atheroscler osis, an enlarged heart, and cerebral hemorrhage, which may have been tr iggered by excitement during the quarrel, and not by the minor head injury. T he lack of supporting evidence, serious lapses in investigation, and contradictions in the prosecution witnesses fully justify the order of acquittal.

18. In conclusion, the view taken by the learned Sessions Court is a reasonable and possible view based on the evidence on record. There i s no perversity or incorrect appreciation of evidence that calls for interference. The appellant has not shown that the acquittal has ca used any serious miscarriage of justice. Therefore, the appeal has no merit and deserves to be dismissed.

19. At this stage, this Court may refer to the decision of the H on’ble Apex Court in the case of Rajesh Prasad v. State of Bihar and Another [(2022) 3 SCC 471] encapsulated the legal position covering the field after considering various earlier judgments and held as below: - “29. After referring to a catena of judgments, this Court culled out the following general principles regarding the powers of the appellate court while dealing with an appeal against an order acquittal in the following words: (Chandrappa case [Chandrappa v. State of Karnataka, (2007) 4 SCC 415] “42. From the above decisions, in our considered view, the following general principles regarding powers of the appellate court while dealing with an appeal against an order of acquittal emerge:

(1) An appellate court has full power to review, re appreciate and reconsider the evidence upon which the order of acquittal is founded.

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R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 (2) The Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 puts no limit ation, restriction or condition on exercise of such power and an appellate court on the evidence before it may reach its own c onclusion, both on questions of fact and of law.

(3) Various expressions, such as, “substantial and compelling reasons”, “good and sufficient grounds”, “very stro ng circumstances”, “distorted conclusions”, “glaring m istakes”, etc.

are not intended to curtail extensive powers of an appellate court in an appeal against acquittal. Such phraseologies are more in the nature of “flourishes of language” to emphasise the reluctance of an appellate court to interfere with acquittal than to curtail the power of the court to review the evidence and to co me to its own conclusion.

(4) An appellate court, however, must bear in mind that in case of acquittal, there is double presumption in favour of the accused.

Firstly, the presumption of innocence is available to him under the fundamental principle of criminal jurisprudence tha t every person shall be presumed to be innocent unless he is prove d guilty by a competent court of law. Secondly, the accused havin g secured his acquittal, the presumption of his innocence is furt her reinforced, reaffirmed and strengthened by the learned Sessions Court.

(5) If two reasonable conclusions are possible on t he basis of the evidence on record, the appellate court should not disturb the finding of acquittal recorded by the learned Sessions Court.”

20. In the case of H.D. Sundara & Ors. v. State of Karnataka [(2023)

9 SCC 581] the Hon’ble Apex Court has summarized the principles governing the exercise of appellate jurisdiction while dealing w ith an appeal against acquittal under Section 378 of CrPC as follows: - “8.1. The acquittal of the accused further strengthe ns the presumption of innocence;

8.2. The appellate court, while hearing an appeal a gainst acquittal, is entitled to reappreciate the oral and documentary evidence;

8.3. The appellate court, while deciding an appeal against acquittal, after reappreciating the evidence, is required to c onsider whether Page 12 of 13 R/CR.A/840/2001 JUDGMENT DATED: 04/02/2026 the view taken by the learned Sessions Court is a p ossible view which could have been taken on the basis of the evidence on record;

8.4. If the view taken is a possible view, the appe llate court cannot overturn the order of acquittal on the ground that another view was also possible; and 8.5. The appellate court can interfere with the ord er of acquittal only if it comes to a finding that the only conclus ion which can be recorded on the basis of the evidence on record was that the guilt of the accused was proved beyond a reasonable doubt an d no other conclusion was possible.”

21. In light of the above legal position and for the reasons recorded i n the foregoing paragraphs, coupled with the fact that the case of the prosecution does not get support from the evidence recorded by the learned Sessions Court, the present appeal fails and is accordingly dismissed. Records and Proceedings, if any, be remitted to the C ourt concerned forthwith.

(ILESH J. VORA,J)

(R. T. VACHHANI, J)

MVP

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Original copy of this order has been signed by the Hon'ble Judges.

Digitally signed by: MITESH VIJAYBHAI PANCHAL(HCD0065), ENGLISH STENOGRAPHER GRADE TWO CLASS TWO, at High Court of Gujarat on 04/02/2026 14:54:10