Mr. Sharma, the High Court has acquitted the accused after re-appreciating the entire evidence. Under settled law, the Supreme Court is slow to interfere with an acquittal. Why should we interfere here?

My Lord, the settled law is that an appellate court should not interfere with an acquittal unless the view taken by the trial court is perverse or unreasonable. However, that principle applies equally to the High Court when it sat in appeal over the Trial Court's conviction. The High Court has not demonstrated any perversity or illegality in the Trial Court's judgment. It has simply substituted its own subjective view — introducing 'fictional probabilities' about how witnesses should behave, how conspirators should behave, what constitutes a 'chance witness' — none of which are supported by the record. The Trial Court's view was legally possible and indeed the only reasonable view. This Court has consistently held that a loose acquittal of a guilty person is as dangerous as the conviction of an innocent. This is a fit case for interference.

The approver PW12 gave a statement under Section 161 Cr.P.C. as an accused, and later gave a different deposition. Don't these contradictions affect his credibility?

My Lord, the contradictions are expected and do not affect credibility. When PW12 was examined under Section 161, he was an accused trying to conceal facts to protect himself. The whole object of grant of pardon under Section 306 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 is to elicit true and full disclosure. After pardon, he was examined as a witness on oath. His deposition is naturally different from his earlier self-serving statement. To reject the approver's evidence on the ground that it contradicts his earlier statement would frustrate the very object of pardon. Moreover, PW12's testimony is substantially corroborated by independent evidence — the eye witnesses, the conspiracy witnesses, the money trail, and the recoveries. The High Court erred in rejecting it.

The High Court found that the prosecution witnesses were 'chance witnesses' whose presence was not properly explained. Is that not a valid ground to doubt their credibility?

My Lord, the term 'chance witness' is not a term of art that automatically discredits a witness. Every witness who happens to be at a place at the relevant time is in one sense a 'chance witness.' The question is whether the presence is explained and whether the witness has any motive to depose falsely. Here, PW2 was an AC repair worker whose presence was explained — he was in the area for work. PW3 was waiting outside HDFC Bank — he explained his purpose (KYC update). PW4 and PW5 were real estate brokers approached by the accused themselves. None of these witnesses had any prior enmity with the accused or any motive to implicate them falsely. The High Court's rejection of their testimony on the ground that they were 'chance witnesses' is an artificial standard not supported by any provision of law.

The CDRs were not properly proved under Section 65-B of the Evidence Act. The CCTV footage was mishandled. The prosecution's electronic evidence has been completely discredited. How can the conviction stand?

My Lord, the State concedes that the CDRs were not properly proved and the CCTV footage was mishandled. However, these were merely corroborative pieces of evidence. The prosecution has ample direct evidence — eye witnesses PW2 and PW3, conspiracy witnesses PW4, PW5, PW8 and PW53, approver PW12, money trail, recoveries of the weapon and blood-stained clothes, and motive. The failure to prove electronic evidence does not affect the outcome when direct evidence is sufficient. This Court has repeatedly held that what matters is the quality, not the quantity of evidence. The direct evidence here is of the highest quality — consistent, credible, and corroborated. The conviction stands on that foundation, not on the CDRs or CCTV.

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High Court Erred in Reversing Trial Court Conviction — (2026) INSC 507

The High Court committed a grave error by substituting its own view for the legally possible view of the Trial Court, introducing fictional probabilities not supported by the record, and rejecting…

State of Tamil Nadu v. Ponnusamy — (2026) INSC 507

Core Argument

The High Court committed a grave error by substituting its own view for the legally possible view of the Trial Court, introducing fictional probabilities not supported by the record, and rejecting credible direct evidence including eye witnesses and approver testimony on hyper-technical grounds.

Key Precedents

Vaibhav v. State of Maharashtra 2025 INSC 800 — Held that motive is relevant but not conclusive; absence of motive may weigh in favour of the accused but does not automatically lead to acquittal when other evidence is sufficient.
Sarwan Singh v. State of Punjab AIR 1957 SC 637 — Held that approver evidence must be corroborated, but the corroboration need not be on every detail; material corroboration is sufficient.
Narayan Chetanram Chaudhary v. State of Maharashtra (2000) 8 SCC 457 — Stands for the proposition that re-enactment evidence is admissible (though noted as possibly per incuriam).

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