New Delhi, Aug 25 The Supreme Court has directed the release of a 70-year-old man by suspending his sentence as it termed the nearly half century long litigation in a double-murder case from Jharkhand a "failure of judicial system."
A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran also questioned the period of over two decades taken by the Jharkhand High Court for deciding the appeal filed by accused Simon Soren, who is undergoing treatment at hospital while in custody.
"The above case projects the failure of the judicial system, when a crime went unpunished and the accused were put to the torture of a prolonged trial of 22 years and then after conviction, the appeal filed having been dismissed after yet another two decades and two years," the bench said in its August 19 order.
There was a double murder incident in Dumka in 1981. Six individuals were arrayed as accused in the case.
The court noted that out of the six, two accused died before the framing of the charges and three of the four convicted, died while the appeal was pending before the high court.
"The sole remaining accused, aged about 70 and troubled with multiple ailments, has surrendered into custody after the high court convicted him (in 2024)," it said.
The court noted that Simon Soren has altogether spent only two years, four months and 12 days in custody and hence the crime has gone unpunished.
Advocate Fauzia Shakil, appearing for Simon Soren, submitted that he would suffer grave prejudice and irreparable loss if bail is not granted to him.
The bench said, "Despite the horrendous crime of a double murder, we cannot close our eyes to the ordeal suffered by the accused in the last 45 years. Especially noting his medical condition and the affidavit of the State that the petitioner is admitted in the hospital, though in custody, we suspend the sentence and direct that the petitioner shall be released forthwith on condition of his not committing any crime when on bail and on his personal surety."
The bench also requisitioned the original record of the case in physical as well as digital form with a request to the high court and the trial court to send it within four weeks.
"By our earlier order, we had also directed the high court to give us a comprehensive report as to why the trial and the disposal of the criminal appeal was delayed to such an extent. An affidavit has been filed by the registrar general of the high court, which reveals a shocking pendency of criminal appeals," it said.
The bench said the registrar general said the delay in trial was because the accused were absconding for six years, but there is no explanation for the 12 years it took for the trial to be completed when the charges were framed in the year 1991.
"We also notice from the report of the district and sessions judge that the case was transferred from one court to another, five times in the 11 years after the charge was framed," it remarked.
The bench, while posting the matter for hearing on September 18, said that the court was concerned with the pendency of the criminal appeals as pointed out in the report of the high court.
It asked for impleading the Union government as party to the case and directed that a copy of the affidavit filed by registrar general be served upon the Attorney General R Venkataramani or Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.
On October 28, 2024, the high court dismissed the appeal and affirmed the life sentence awarded by the trial court in 2002.
On October 18, 1981, Bibhuti Mandal, Banarsi Mandal, Kschir Sagar Mandal, and their nephews, Jagdish Mandal and Satyanarayan Mandal, had gone to Bhurundia village of Dumka district for paddy harvesting.
According to Jagdish and Satyanarayan, who became informants in the case, at the party's approach near a river, Santhal tribals assembled by beat of drum, armed with bows and arrows, and axes and made a call to kill members of the Mandal family.
The Mandals tried to flee but were chased down.
It was alleged that Jethun Soren struck Bibhuti Mandal with an arrow and thereafter, Simon Soren also struck him with an arrow. Banarsi Mandal was also struck with an arrow by Jethun Soren and Simon Soren.
When both of them fell down, Jagdish and Satyanarayan saw from a distance that they were hacked to death by accused persons, the prosecution noted.
