AHSAN SABIR and another vs THE STATE
This matter arises from a criminal petition filed by the accused petitioners seeking premature acquittal under section 265-K of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898 in a case registered under section 302 read with section 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code 1860. The core legal question was whether an uncorroborated extra-judicial confession of a weak nature, made by a third party and implicating the accused without details, justifies continuing a criminal trial where the police report under section 173 Cr.P.C. found the accused innocent. The Lahore High Court held that the trial has no probability of resulting in a conviction given the extremely weak and uncorroborated nature of the evidence. The court laid down the principle that an extra-judicial confession is a very weak type of evidence which seldom suffices for conviction by itself, and where the evidence lacks corroboration and the accused were found innocent during investigation, continuation of the trial is an abuse of process warranting premature acquittal under section 265-K Cr.P.C.
- Whether an extra-judicial confession alone is sufficient to sustain a conviction without corroborative evidence?
- Can a trial court dismiss an application under section 265-K Cr.P.C. when the accused were found innocent during police investigation and the sole evidence is a deficient extra-judicial confession?
- Is premature acquittal warranted under section 265-K Cr.P.C. when there is no probability of the accused being convicted at the conclusion of the trial?
- Section 302, Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 34, Pakistan Penal Code 1860
- Section 265-K, Code of Criminal Procedure 1898
- Section 173, Code of Criminal Procedure 1898
1. ' ASIF SAEED KHAN KHOSA, J.---The petitioners are accused persons in case F.I.R. No, 23 registered at Police Station D-Typc Colony, Faisalabad on 6-2-2005 in respect of an offence under section 302, P.P.0 read with section 34, P.P.0 which case is presently being tried by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Faisalabad. The petitioners submitted an application under section 265-K, Cr.P.C.
2. Seeking their premature acquittal but that application was dismissed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Faisalabad vide order dated 31-5-2006. Hence, the present petition before this Court.
2. After hearing the learned counsel for the parties and going through the relevant record of this case appended with this petition it has been noticed by me that the occurrence in this case had taken place after dark in the month of February and according to the F.I.R. Lodged in that regard the culprits committing the alleged murder had remained unidentified at the spot. Both the present petitioners had not been nominated in the F.I.R. In any capacity whatsoever. The petitioners' names had surfaced in this case for the first time on 9-2-2005 through an application submitted by Mst.
3. Noor Jahan (mother of Imran Baig deceased) before the Investigating Officer wherein she had alleged that the mother of the present petitioners namely Mst. Shamim had made an extra-judicial confession before her a few days ago regarding the petitioners' involvement in the murder in issue.
4. A copy of the said application submitted by the mother of Imran Baig deceased before the Investigating Officer has . Been appended with this petition and a perusal of the same shows that no date or time of making of the extra-judicial confession by the mother of the present petitioners had been disclosed in the said application. Even the individual roles allegedly played by the present petitioners or the details of the occurrence had not been mentioned in the said extrajudicial confession attributed to the petitioners' mother. It is not disputed that no other piece of evidence is available on the record of this case tending to incriminate the petitioners in the alleged murder. During the investigation the petitioners had been found to be innocent and this is so evident from the report submitted in this case under section 173, Cr.P.C. It is universally acknowledged that an extra-judicial confession is a very weak type of evidence and it seldom suffices all by itself for recording a conviction in the absence of any other piece of evidence. In the case in hand the weakness of the alleged extra-judicial. Confession is compounded by the fact that the same had not been made by the present petitioner's and it also suffers from the deficiencies already pointed out above. In these circumstances there is hardly any likelihood or probability of recording of the petitioners' conviction by the learned trial Court at the end of the day. This petition is,. Therefore, allowed, the petitioners' application submitted before the learned trial Court under section 265-K, Cr.P.C. Is accepted and the petitioners are acquitted in the above mentioned criminal case. The petitioners arc already on bail. Their bail bonds and sureties shall stand discharged.