Gang Rape & Murder Case: Patna HC Acquits Man Sentenced To Death Noting Prosecution's Sole Reliance On Sniffer Dog Evidence

This week, the Patna High Court overturned the death penalty handed down to a man convicted of the murder and rape of a 12-year-old girl. The court reached this decision upon discovering that the prosecution's entire case relied solely on the presence of a sniffer dog entering the accused man's house. The division bench of Justices Ashutosh Kumar and Alok Kumar Pandey observed, “We fail to understand as to how the Trial Court proceeded in the same manner as the investigation had proceeded, on the presumption that the dog would never have faulted in entering the house of the appellant. There is evidence of the dog having entered another person's house also. We, for the present, do not say that help of a snifer dog cannot be taken by the police.”“Animal science tells us that the dogs can be very proficient if they are trained properly. The advantage with them as compared to the humans is of their possessing a very sharp olfactory sense which could help trace the offender. But this cannot be an evidence, much less strong evidence unless the Court examines the reliability of the dog skills, its past patterns of performance or its handler's capabilities. It cannot ever be taken as a reliable pointer towards the commission of an offense at the hands of an offender,” the bench added.However, the Court held that while a sniffer dog's assistance could serve as an initial lead for a police investigation, it should not be considered as conclusive evidence to the extent that the trial court does not require any corroborative evidence.The above observation came in a Death Reference whereby the appellant was convicted under Sections 302/34, 201/34 and 376DB/34 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, vide judgment passed by the Special Judge (POCSO)-cum- Additional District & Sessions Judge-VI, Araria, in Spl. POCSO Act Case. On the same day, he was sentenced to be hanged by neck till he died.As per the factual matrix of the case, a 12-year-old girl was said to have been gang-raped and then killed and thrown on a road near a temple, where she along with her grandmother had gone to witness a fair organized on the occasion of the Nagpanchami festival. Allegedly, the occurrence took place in August 2019 but the FIR was registered a day after the dead body was recovered and was sent for postmortem examination on the same day.The police after investigation submitted a charge sheet against the appellant, who was charged for the offences under Sections 302, 376D, 201/34 of the IPC and Section 4 of the POCSO Act, 2012 and was tried by the Special POCSO Court. The Trial Court, after having examined 13 witnesses on behalf of the prosecution and none on behalf of the defence, convicted and sentenced the appellant as aforesaid.The Court initially conveyed its discontent with the Special Court's handling of the case, expressing dissatisfaction over the appellant's conviction and death sentence without adherence to fundamental legal principles.Continuing, the Court observed that at the location where the girl's body was discovered, a tracker sniffer dog was deployed. Initially, the dog detected the scent of the deceased body and then proceeded to enter a villager's residence. The Court further highlighted that, as no incriminating evidence was discovered there, the tracking dog subsequently entered the appellant's house, leading to his arrest.The Court pointed out, “Though the Trial Court has listed the evidence of the appellant having closed himself inside a room, which was locked from outside as one of the circumstances against him, but there is no evidence whatsoever of the door having been broken open for arresting the appellant. Thus, for all practical purposes, the only girdle on which the prosecution has rested its case is the snifer dogs tracking trajectory.”The Court further pointed out that there was nothing on record to get any idea about the skills of the dog used for tracking or of the handler who had trained the canine. "This is what is troubling us that without assessing the probative value of the materials, death sentence has been awarded by the Trial Court," the Court said.The Court pointed out that the appellant was said to have confessed his guilt, and this story of confession also did not appear to be true for the reason that the appellant was arrested from his house and his confession was recorded before a B.D.O., whose name was disclosed in the investigation, but there was no emblem of the authority of the B.D.O. was present on the record.“Who would believe such story of the prosecution that he had confessed his guilt? Perhaps the Trial Court did and also relied upon the materials which were narrated in the so-called confession,” the Court remarked.The Court pointed out that the Trial Court may have overlooked the crucial fact that an investigative agency utilized a tracker dog and depended on the canine's abilities to ascertain whether it had entered...

Gang Rape & Murder Case: Patna HC Acquits Man Sentenced To Death Noting Prosecution's Sole Reliance On Sniffer Dog Evidence

Bhavya Singh

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