A Delhi court has acquitted a driver and his relative, who were sentenced to varying jail terms for stealing his employer's car, saying the prosecution's case was full of "contradictions".
Additional Sessions Judge Sanjeev Jain, while allowing the appeals of car owner's driver Shyam Babu and his relative Pramod Thakur, said there was no evidence on record to show that either of the men had committed the crime.
"Careful perusal of record clearly reflects that there is no evidence on record to show that accused Shyam had committed the theft of the car and there is no witness to prove the same. The car could not be recovered," the judge said.
The magisterial court had by its June 2014 judgement awarded one-year jail term to Shyam for the offence of theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master under section 381 of IPC and Pramod was sentenced to six months in jail for possessing stolen property under section 411 of the IPC.
The sessions judge, while setting aside the magistrate court's judgement, noted that the prosecution had based its case on the alleged disclosure statements made by the accused men in which they admitted to have committed the theft but the same "did not appear to be genuine".
