By Admin 
The Allahabad High Court has acquitted a 100-year-old man of all charges in a murder case, 42 years after his conviction. This person was sentenced to life imprisonment. The High Court said that long pending appeal and considerable age are relevant while granting relief.
This incident took place in Hamirpur in the year 1982 and after the trial, the Sessions Court of Hamirpur sentenced the appellant Dhani Ram to life imprisonment in 1984.
Cannot ignore the 4 decade long concerns of the accused – Court
The bench of Justice Chandradhari Singh and Justice Sanjeev Kumar, while accepting the appeal of Dhani Ram, said that the anxiety, uncertainty and social consequences faced by the accused during the last several decades cannot be ignored.
The bench said that since the appellant Dhani Ram was on bail, his bail would be considered cancelled. The court gave this order because the prosecution in this case failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt.
In 1982, two brothers had a clash with Dhani Ram.
According to the facts of this case, on 9 August 1982, the complainant and his brother Gunuva (deceased) were returning home. Then on the way he met Macu, who had a gun in his hand. Satti Deen and Dhani Ram were also with Macu. Satti Din had a ball in his hand, while Dhani Ram had an ax in his hand.
Satti Deen and Dhani Ram instigate Maiku to kill Gunuva because Gunuva had once confiscated his pistol and also taken away 6 bighas of his land. Due to old enmity, Macu shot Gunuva, due to which he died there.
Hearing the sound of the gunshot, four persons ran to the spot and tried to intervene. However, the accused fled from the scene. This incident happened in Hamirpur district.
One accused absconding, other dead, only Dhani Ram was left
After this, in July 1984, the Additional Sessions Judge of Hamirpur convicted Satti Deen and Dhani Ram of murder and sentenced them to life imprisonment. However, Dhani Ram was released on bail in 1984.
The main accused Macu was absconding, while Satti Deen died while his appeal was pending. Thus, only Dhani Ram’s case was going on in the High Court.
Lawyer’s appeal – The accused has turned 100 years old, leave him now
The counsel for the appellant argued that his client was almost 100 years old and his role was only to provoke. The main accused Macu was never arrested by the police.