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The Medical Evidence alone, Compromised by Delays, was Insufficient to Sustain Conviction without Corroborative Testimony --- Supreme Court of Pakistan

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The Medical Evidence alone, Compromised by Delays, was Insufficient to Sustain Conviction without Corroborative Testimony --- Supreme Court of Pakistan

Islamabad 11-03-2025: The Supreme Court of Pakistan has acquitted accused person, previously convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for kidnapping and raping a minor girl, citing critical flaws and contradictions in the prosecution’s case. The landmark judgment was delivered by a two-member bench comprising Mr. Justice Salahuddin Panhwar and Mr. Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim.

The accused person was initially found guilty by an Additional Sessions Judge, Kot-Addu, District Muzaffargarh, and was sentenced under Sections 365-B (kidnapping) and 376 (rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). His appeal to the Lahore High Court partially succeeded, leading to the removal of a theft conviction but confirming the severe charges of kidnapping and rape.

In its decision, the Supreme Court of Pakistan highlighted several fundamental weaknesses in the prosecution’s case, including a seven-day unexplained delay in registering the FIR, the absence of key witnesses, investigative negligence, and delayed forensic testing. The Court noted the failure to examine vital witnesses, notably the victim’s mother and siblings, and emphasized that the medical evidence alone, compromised by delays, was insufficient to sustain conviction without corroborative testimony.

The judgment strongly criticized the police investigation for not properly recording witness statements under Section 161 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Cr.P.C.) and failing to produce critical evidence, ultimately leading the Court to draw an adverse inference against the prosecution under Article 129(g) of the Qanun-e-Shahadat Order, 1984.

Reiterating the established legal principle that an accused must be given the benefit of doubt if even a single reasonable doubt arises, the Supreme Court of Pakistan acquitted accused person, overturning his convictions and ordering his immediate release.