Gujarat High Court acquits father in minor daughter's murder case

Gujarat High Court has acquitted accused a man who was sentenced to death for allegedly impregnating and murdering his minor daughter in Surat in 2017. The court cited serious lapses in the prosecution's case, particularly regarding DNA evidence and chain of incriminating circumstances.

The  accused was awarded capital punishment by a Surat sessions court in 2020. He had appealed against the conviction in the high court.

A division bench of the high court observed that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt, as the complete chain of incriminating circumstances pointing to the accused's guilt was not established. The court directed the release of the accused if his detention is not required in any other case.

Key to the prosecution's case was DNA evidence linking accused to the crime. However, the court ruled that this could not be relied upon due to unexplained delays and improper handling of blood samples. Blood samples from the victim were collected during the postmortem on June 30, 2017, preserved in an EDTA bulb, and handed over to police. The accused father was arrested on July 6, 2017, with his samples collected the same day. 

Both sets were deposited at the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Surat only on July 13, 2017. resulting in a 13-day delay for the victim's samples and a 7-day delay for the accused's. The court noted no explanation from the prosecution for these delays or for failing to maintain proper temperature controls, such as using ice boxes or coolant packs, raising the possibility of sample contamination.

Additionally, the police officer responsible for transferring the samples to the FSL was not examined as a witness, breaking the chain of custody. The scientific officer who conducted the DNA profiling held only a BSc in Zoology. 

The bench emphasised that mere non-explanation by the accused cannot prove guilt and that more evidence was needed to connect him to the crime.

The court also criticised the prosecution for not examining key witnesses, including the accused's wife and brother who allegedly knew about the pregnancy and related medical visits. Reliance solely on a shopkeeper's testimony for the "last seen together" theory was deemed insufficient without corroboration.

The case dates back to June 2017, when the minor victim was allegedly taken by her father on the pretext of medical treatment to a secluded farm in Surat's Chowpati area after purchasing snacks. The prosecution claimed father strangled her to death to conceal the alleged sexual abuse that led to her pregnancy and avoid family disgrace.