SC: Quality of evidence matters, not quantity

The Supreme Court has ruled that it is quality and not the quantity of evidence that matters in arriving at the truth. 







While setting aside the judgment of Allahabad High Court acquitting three accused in a double murder case, a bench comprising Justices Dalveer Bhandari and Mukundakam Sharma noted, "Section 134 of the Evidence Act provides that no particular number of witnesses is required for proof of any fact." "It is trite law that it is not the number of witnesses, but it is the quality of evidence which is required to be taken note of by the courts for ascertaining the truth of the allegations made against the accused," it stated. 







Appellant Raj Narain Singh, whose two sons Brajesh Singh and Rajesh Kumar Singh were shot dead by three persons on May 24, 1994, got justice after 15 years when the apex court overturned the judgement of Allahabad High Court acquitting all the three accused. 







The incident had taken place at a petrol pump in Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh. 







The trial court had earlier sentenced the accused, namely Karunakar Pandey, Pushkar Pandey and Prabhakar Pandey to life imprisonment. 







Allahabad High Court, however, set aside the trial court order and acquitted all the three. 







Father of the deceased Raj Narain Singh challenged the order of acquittal in the Supreme Court. 







The apex court rejected the contention of the counsel for the accused that all the witnesses present on the spot had not been examined. 







The Supreme Court also noted that the Court will not hesitate to interfere if the acquittal is perverse in the sense that no reasonable person would have come to that conclusion, or if the acquittal is manifestly illegal or grossly unjust. 







The apex court directed all the three accused to surrender within 15 days to serve the Centre.