Chandigarh Court Frees Teenager After Two-Year Ordeal, Cites Flawed Evidence
In a significant verdict, a district court in Chandigarh has acquitted a 19-year-old girl who spent over two years in custody, accused of murdering her own father. The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Sonika delivered the judgment on January 4, 2026, highlighting critical inconsistencies in the prosecution's evidence and witness testimonies that led to reasonable doubt.
The Tragic Incident and Initial Allegations
The case dates back to August 9, 2023, when a neighbour, Gulab, visited 52-year-old Sumei Lala's house to get cold water. He allegedly discovered Lala lying in a pool of blood, with his daughter attempting to stem the bleeding from a chest wound. Gulab, with other neighbours and a woman named Asha, rushed Lala to the Government Multi-Specialty Hospital in Sector 16, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
According to the First Information Report (FIR) filed at the IT Park police station, Gulab claimed the young girl later confessed to him. He stated she said her father would regularly abuse her when he returned home drunk, which led her to stab him. She reportedly asked Gulab to take her to the police to seek forgiveness. Based on this and a subsequent disclosure by Asha, the police recovered a knife from the Sukhna choe and arrested the teenager on murder charges.
Defence Exposes Critical Flaws in Prosecution's Case
During the trial, defence counsel Gurdit Saini systematically dismantled the prosecution's narrative. He argued that his client was falsely implicated. The defence presented a forensic mismatch that became a cornerstone of the acquittal.
The alleged murder weapon, a knife with a round tip and a blade length of 9.8 centimetres, could not have caused a wound that was 10.6 centimetres deep, as recorded in the post-mortem and forensic reports. This fundamental discrepancy raised serious questions about the weapon's link to the crime.
Furthermore, the defence highlighted that the complainant, Gulab, admitted in court that the accused never actually confessed to killing her father in his presence. This retraction severely undermined the prosecution's version of events regarding the alleged confession.
Verdict of Acquittal and Awaiting Detailed Order
After hearing the arguments and examining the testimony and evidence, Judge Sonika's court found the prosecution's case untenable. The gaps in evidence and the unreliability of witness statements created sufficient reasonable doubt, leading to the girl's acquittal.
The court has ordered her release. While a detailed written order explaining the judicial reasoning is still awaited, the judgment underscores the importance of concrete, corroborative evidence in criminal trials, especially in capital offences like murder. The case serves as a stark reminder of the legal principle that the benefit of doubt must always go to the accused.
