Legal Case Summary

Case Details
Case ID 73838ed2-1ca1-4e54-8f69-9a6b58f878d3
Body View case body.
Case Number Crl. Rev. No. 161 of 2015
Decision Date Oct 04, 2021
Hearing Date Oct 04, 2021
Decision The Lahore High Court overturned the conviction of Mohammad Asghar, ruling that the ocular account of the incident was discredited concerning four other accused individuals. The court held that if the ocular evidence was deemed unreliable for those four accused, it could not be solely relied upon to convict the petitioner. The trial court had failed to provide sufficient reasoning for convicting the petitioner while acquitting the others. The court emphasized that injuries on a person only prove their presence at the crime scene but do not establish the truth of the allegations. The revision petition was allowed, and the petitioner was acquitted.
Summary In the case of Mohammad Asghar vs. Additional Sessions Judge, the Lahore High Court addressed significant issues regarding the reliability of ocular evidence in criminal proceedings. The court critically examined the trial court's judgment, which had convicted the petitioner while acquitting four co-accused based on the same incident. The principle of 'falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus' was highlighted, emphasizing that if the evidence was unreliable for one party, it could not be used against another. The court's decision to allow the revision petition underlines the importance of fair trial standards and the need for substantial reasoning in judicial decisions. This case reinforces the legal principle that mere presence at the scene of a crime does not equate to guilt without corroborative evidence. Keywords: criminal law, ocular evidence, acquittal, Lahore High Court, legal principles.
Court Lahore High Court, Multan Bench
Entities Involved Altaf Hussain
Judges SOHAIL NASIR, J.
Lawyers Malik Muhammad Zahid Kabeer, Advocate for Petitioner, Mr. Muhammad Laeeq-ur-Rehman, ADPP for State
Petitioners MOHAMMAD ASGHAR
Respondents ADDITIONAL SESSIONS JUDGE, Malik Muhammad Zahid Kabeer
Citations 2022 SLD 1942, 2022 PLJ 543
Other Citations PLD 2019 SC 527
Laws Involved Criminal Procedure Code (V of 1898)
Sections 435, 439