Kamal Ghorui
PRAYAGRAJ: After decades of waiting, Dhani Ram finally won his freedom in his 100th year. Allahabad high court last month acquitted the Hamirpur native, convicted in 1984 for a 1982 murder tied to a property feud. Though sentenced to life, he was released on bail that same year, spending 42 years waiting for finality while his appeal crawled through the docket.A division bench of Justices Chandra Dhari Singh and Sanjiv Kumar, in a 23-page ruling dated Jan 21, tore into contradictions they found in the prosecution’s case — from unreliable testimony of two eyewitnesses to omissions in FIR and what the court called “inherent improbabilities.”With main accused Maiku absconding since 1982 and allegedly the one who fired the fatal shot, the judges said the prosecution had failed to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.When a person stands before the court at the twilight of existence, the insistence on penal consequences, after decades of procedural delay, risks transforming justice into a ritual divorced from the purpose it intends,” the bench wrote, adding that prolonged anxiety, uncertainty and social fallout “cannot be ignored” when deciding what justice now requires.Dhani Ram and co-accused Satti Din had been convicted under IPC sections 302 read with 34 for accompanying Maiku during the killing.Satti Din died during his own pending appeal, leaving Dhani Ram the lone surviving appellant.His counsel said he was only accused of exhortation, not firing any shot. State counsel opposed the acquittal.The Allahabad high court ruled that the benefit of doubt must go to the centenarian. With acquittal granted, his bail bond stands discharged.
