MANOJBHAI JETHABHAI PARMAR Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard.

(2.) A grave and distressing case of brutal sexual assault upon a four-year old girl[Hereinafter, being referred to as 'child victim'.] stands before this Court, enveloped in layers of investigative apathy and procedural infirmities. The First Information Report, despite the informant's professed complete knowledge of the incident, is bereft of even the most rudimentary details, neither the name of the accused person (appellant herein) nor those of the purported witnesses of the last seen together circumstance find mention. What followed was an investigation hopelessly botched and a trial conducted with a pedantic rigidity that obscured, rather than unveiled, the truth. The highly unnatural conduct of the witnesses, marked by gross insensitivity/rank apathy, contradictions and apparent concoctions raises serious doubts about the reliability of the prosecution's case. Yet, in face of this disturbing matrix, the accused-appellant stands convicted and has remained behind bars for nearly thirteen long years.

(3.) This Court cannot remain oblivious to the sobering reality that such handling of criminal cases leaves scars not merely upon the individuals involved but upon the justice system itself. When investigations are carried out in a manner that betrays their foundational purpose, and trials become mechanical exercises divorced from the quest for truth, the resulting miscarriage of justice reverberates far beyond the confines of the courtroom. It erodes public faith, instils uncertainty in victims, and sends a chilling message to society at large that the pursuit of justice may falter not at the altar of complexity but at the hands of indifference. The criminal law, which must stand as a bulwark protecting the vulnerable, risks becoming an instrument of unintended cruelty when procedural lapses and institutional negligence overshadow substantive justice. With this prelude, we now proceed to examine the factual matrix of the case.