New Delhi: The conduct and false answers of
convict Manu Sharma in model Jessica Lall murder case to court
queries during the trial were the factors which helped the
Supreme Court in nailing him in the case.
"Conduct which destroys the presumption of innocence
can alone be considered as material," the Court, which upheld
the Delhi High Court verdict awarding life term to Manu, said.
It said the fact that the accused absconded after the
incident was proved beyond reasonable doubt, it said, adding
he even did not lodge any report about the alleged missing of
his vehicle which was recovered by police in an abandoned
condition.
During the probe, he did not inform anybody about his
whereabouts until he surrendered on May 6, 1999, it said.
"A criminal trial is not an enquiry into the conduct
of an accused for any purpose other than to determine whether
he is guilty of the offence charged. In this connection, that
piece of conduct can be held to be incriminatory which has no
reasonable explanation except on the hypothesis that he is
guilty," the court, in its 229-page verdict, said.
On his false answers to the court queries during the
trial, it said where an accused furnishes false answers as
regards proved facts, the court is ought to draw an adverse
inference against the accused.
It said Manu Sharma gave false answers to 11 material
questions posed to him by the trial court judge.
He even failed to explain about his licensed pistol,
used in the commission of the offence, the apex court said
adding "it was his duty to have kept the same in safe custody
... Thus an adverse inference has to be drawn against him for
non-explanation of the whereabouts of the pistol ...the burden
thus shifts on him."
It also discussed the collusion between key witness
and complainant model-turned-actor Shayan Munshi and the
accused.
The fact that Munshi was accompanied by Ashok Bansal, a
defence advocate, while testifying during the trial, went
against the accused, it said.
"An adverse inference against the accused has to be
drawn for influencing the witness," it said.
PTI
