HALLU AND OTHERS vs STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

The Supreme Court held that the High Court erred in convicting the appellants under Section 302 read with Section 149 IPC, as it failed to consider the absence of the appellants' names in the First Information Report (FIR) and the discrepancies in witness testimonies. The Court emphasized that the FIR does not require personal knowledge of the incident by the informant, and the prosecution's case was undermined by conflicting reports regarding the timing and details of the incident. The Court reinstated the acquittal, stating that the guilt of the accused was not proven beyond reasonable doubt.