Three-Judge Bench Affirms Conviction in Child Rape-Murder; Appeals Dismissed Though Death Sentence Execution Is Otiose After Accused's Death

A three-judge bench of Justices B.R. Gavai, K.V. Viswanathan and Sandeep Mehta heard appeals by Abdul Nassar challenging the Kerala High Court's 28 February 2018 order which had dismissed his criminal appeal and confirmed the trial court's death sentence under Section 302 IPC and seven years' RI under Section 376 IPC arising from Sessions Case No. 487 of 2012. The appeals arose from a trial court judgment dated 31 July 2013 that convicted the sole accused for the rape and murder of a nine-year-old girl.

The Court summarised that the prosecution had proved guilt by circumstantial evidence and concurrent findings of fact recorded by the trial court and the High Court deserved deference. The bench emphasised the established tests for cases resting on circumstantial evidence and observed that the prosecution had fulfilled the required links. The Court, in its reasoning, observed: “It is well to remember that in cases where the evidence is of a circumstantial nature, the circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt is to be drawn should in the first instance be fully established... there must be a chain of evidence so far complete as not to leave any reasonable ground for a conclusion consistent with the innocence of the accused and it must be such as to show that within all human probability the act must have been done by the accused.” The bench further stated that these were the “five golden principles (Panchsheel)” for proof in circumstantial cases and held that “the chain of incriminating circumstances required to bring home the guilt of the accused is complete in all aspects.” The appeals were dismissed, but the bench recorded that execution of the death sentence had become otiose as the appellant died on 16 January 2024.

Background The prosecution case was that on 4 April 2012 a nine‑year‑old girl left home to go to the madrassa, was seen near the house of the accused and went missing. After repeated neighbourhood searches the child’s body was discovered the same evening concealed in a bathroom adjacent to the accused’s house. The trial court convicted the accused for rape and murder, awarding death for murder and RI for rape. The High Court by a Division Bench dismissed the criminal appeal and confirmed the death sentence in D.S.R. No. 3 of 2013. The accused obtained special leave to appeal to this Court; execution had been stayed on 4 September 2018.

The prosecution relied on eyewitnesss from the locality, post‑mortem findings of 37 ante‑mortem injuries and manual compressive and ligature strangulation, forensic reports including detection of seminal stains and DNA profiling matching the accused, and recovery of the victim’s belongings after a disclosure statement. The defence challenged chain‑of‑custody, alleged contamination of the scene, gaps in seizure documentation, absence of certain search witnesses and argued that the case rested on circumstantial evidence that did not exclude reasonable hypotheses of innocence. The Supreme Court analysed testimony, material exhibits, FSL and DNA reports and the investigative chronology, applied the principles in Sharad Birdhichand Sarda and related authorities, and held that the cumulative circumstances pointed only to the accused’s guilt. The Court, while upholding conviction and dismissal of appeals, noted procedural and evaluative deficiencies in lower courts’ reasoning but found the evidence clinching. As the appellant had died, the question of executing capital punishment did not arise; pending applications stood disposed.

Case Details: Case No.: CRIMINAL APPEAL NOS. 1122-1123 OF 2018 (Reported as 2025 INSC 35) Case Title: Abdul Nassar v. State of Kerala & Anr. Appearances: For the Petitioner(s): Shri Trideep Pais, Senior Counsel (for the accused/appellant) For the Respondent(s): Shri R. Basant, Senior Counsel (for the State)