MAGGA AND ANOTHER vs THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN

The Supreme Court held that Section 285 of the Criminal Procedure Code allows a trial with three assessors to continue with fewer than three if an assessor is absent due to sufficient cause, but does not permit substitution of assessors during the trial. In this case, the trial commenced with assessors A, B, and D, and continued with A, B, D, and E after A's absence. The Court ruled that while the initial irregularity did not vitiate the trial, the substitution of E for A was illegal, leading to the conclusion that the trial was invalid. The appeal was thus allowed, and the conviction under Section 302 IPC was set aside.