New Delhi/Bhubaneswar: The Supreme Court has acquitted a man from Odisha who spent nearly 22 years in prison for a 2004 triple murder, ruling that the prosecution’s case relied on “weak and highly unreliable” evidence and condemning the investigation.
In a strong-worded observation, the top court noted that 22 years of a man’s life were taken away without any credible evidence.
A three-judge bench said Arjun Jani was arrested on suspicion, subjected to third-degree torture to extract a confession and convicted without credible evidence, calling it a violation of the principles of justice.
The case involved the killings of three women–Kamala, Sombari and Ratnai–in Koraput district.
Prosecutors relied primarily on a single eyewitness whose account contained inconsistencies and was not supported by other evidence, the top court said.
The top court also cited contradictions over the alleged recovery of the murder weapon and the coerced confession, concluding prosecutors failed to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The court directed the Koraput DLSA to help rehabilitate and reintegrate Jani into society.