Three relatives of an aged woman who were facing trial for injuring and threatening her 16 years ago have been acquitted by a Delhi court which held that their "false implication" cannot be ruled out.
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sonu Agnihotri acquitted the 65-year-old woman's son-in-law Ram Singh, her maternal grandson Devender Kumar and his wife Jagroshni of the charges of house-trespass, voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation under the IPC.
"All the circumstances goad me to believe that motive is available with the complainant for filing of present complaint and false implication of accused persons cannot be ruled out.
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"It cannot be said that complainant (woman) has been able to prove her case beyond reasonable doubt," the judge said.
While acquitting them of the charge of trespassing, the court noted that from the documents complainant Ram Kaur provided, it could not be proved that she was the owner of the property.
According to the prosecution, Devender was residing with her since his childhood days and his education and marriage expenses were taken care of by her late husband.
She had lodged a complaint through a written statement that on July 1, 1998, Singh, Devender and Jagroshni had beaten her up and threatened to kill her if she did not leave the house by transferring the property to her grandson.
It also claimed that 15 days later, the accused persons entered the small shop which was on the same plot and tried to illegally take it over following which a quarrel took place.
All the three persons were arrested under the Delhi Police Act for misbehaviour with intent to provoke breach of peace, it said.
While acquitting the family members, the court said Kaur did not inform the police immediately after the first incident and there was no evidence to show that she suffered any physical injury.
It also noted that there was contradiction in her statements as Kaur had told the police that her grandson never paid rent for staying in the house but in her statement in the court, she said that he started paying rent a few months after her husband's death.
The family members, in their defence, had claimed that the case was false and frivolous due to a property dispute between Kumar and Kaur.
