Lakshmi Srinivasan 37 BALLB JMC

7/24/2019 Lakshmi Srinivasan 37 BALLB JMC

1/23

SVKMs NMIMS

School of Law, Mumbai

A Project Submitted

On

THE TRIAL OF PRIYAARSHINI MATTOO !ASE" AN ANALYSIS

In compliance with partial fulfillment of the marking scheme,

for Trimester IV of 2!"#2!$, in the subject of

#O$RNALISM AN MASS !OMM$NI!ATION % I

Submitted

To

%acult&' P&of' #o(a)*o Mu+h&-

Submitted b&'

Ms' La+shmi S&i)i.asa)

(oll no) *+

ourse' /'A', L'L'/ 0Ho)s'1

On !*thSeptember, 2!", !)*pm

!


2/23

Tabl of !o)*)*s

-o Topic Page -o)Abbre.iations *

ases referred "

Statutes (eferred $

(esearch /ethodolog& 0#+

hapter ! Introduction 1#

hapter 2 %acts of the case !#!!

hapter * Anal&sis of the case !2#!0

hapter " (ole of /edia !+#!1

hapter $ onclusion !#23ibliograph& 2!

2


3/23

A//REVIATIONS

!) IPS 4 Indian Police Ser.ice

2) 553 # 5egum 3accalaureus 63achelor of 5aws7*) 3 om # 3achelor of ommerce

") / om 4 /asters of ommerce

$) r)P 4 riminal Procedure ode0) IP 4 Indian Penal ode

+) 8-A 4 8eo9&ribose -ucleic Acid

1) /3 4 entre for ellular and /olecular 3iolog&

) 3I 4 entral 3ureau of In.estigation!) .s) 4 Versus

!!) S 4 Supreme ourt

!2) AI( 4 All India (eporter!*) ri5: 4 riminal 5aw :ournal

!ASES REFERRE

*


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"

Serial number ase name and citation

! S);) Singh .s) State through 3I

Criminal Appeal No. 87 of 2007

2 State 6Through 3I7 .s Santosh ;umar

Singh 2+ ri5: 0" 6


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STAT$TES REFERRE

Serial no) -ame of the Statute

A) The onstitution of India, !$

3) Indian Penal ode, !10

) The riminal Procedure ode, !+*

$


6/23

RESEAR!H METHOOLO2Y

A) (>5>VA-> O% T ST?8@'

Pri&adarshini /attoo case became a subject of hue and cr& and media bu== gi.en the

audacit& of the crime and the failure of the police) It highlighted the falling law and order

situation in 8elhi and the conseuences of political pressure) It set an e9ample of how the

media can work as an important force to ignite the minds of the people and unite them in

case of injustice) It also set an e9ample of the pressure on the judiciar& due to media

interference)

3) O3:>TIV> O% T ST?8@'

The following are the objecti.es of the stud&'

To ha.e an understanding of the Indian statutes)

To understand the case and its judgment in a detailed manner)

To prepare a case stud& on this case)

To understand the role of media in this case)

To know the drawbacks of the Indian /edia)

) (>S>A(< B?>STIO-S'

The following are the uestions on which this research is based'

Chat is the case aboutD

Chat was the incidentD

Chat is the chronolog& of the e.ents that led to this incidentD

Chat was the judgmentD

Cas the :udiciar& justified in its standD

Chat were its contro.ersiesD

Chat is the role of the mediaD

8)


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The main focus of this stud& would be to know and understand the legal and popular

perspecti.e of this case) Also the prime focus would be anal&sis of this case in its facts

and the judgment)

>) 5I/ITATIO- O% T ST?8@'

The following are the limitations to this research'

The stud& is doctrinal and is based on secondar& research)

The research is limited to books and internet)

Primar& research was not possible due to the time constraint to gather the

subject matter)

+


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INTRO$!TION

EThough I know that he is the man who committed the crime, I acuit him and gi.e him the

benefit of doubtF) These infamous words b& Additional Sessions :udge G)P) Thareja shocked

e.er& person who was confident that the accused in the case would be found guilt& as there was

enough e.idence against him) This case is the Pri&adarshini /attoo trial that took place in !

and took ! &ears to be rectified 6the Supreme ourt ga.e its decision in 2!7)

In India, there ha.e been man& cases which make the people understand the condition of law

enforcement in our countr&) The Pri&adarshini /attoo case was one such case) It made the

people reali=e the deplorable state of our criminal justice s&stem) Apart from that, it also made us

reali=e the role pla&ed b& the media to enforce justice in a democrac&)

This case also made us reali=e that mone& and influence speaks better than e.idence) Santosh

;umar Singh is the son of %ormer Senior IPS Officer :)P) Singh) The acuittal of the accused b&

the Trial court and gi.ing him a benefit of doubt in spite of enough e.idence against him pro.es

the fact that indeed influence can den& justice)

%reedom of press is reuired for a democrac& to function) Cith reference to this case, the media

was instrumental in bringing the accused to book) nforcement of laws is ensured b& the :udiciar&) It also safeguards our

fundamental rights)


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10/23

FA!TS OF THE !ASE

Pri&adarshini /attoo was a 2$ &ear old student stud&ing at ampus 5aw entre pursuing an

553 degree under the 8elhi ?ni.ersit&) She was found raped and murdered at her house in -ew

8elhi on 2* :anuar&, !0)

Pri&adarshini was born in Srinagar and finished her schooling there) After her schooling was

completed, her famil& mo.ed to :ammu) She pursued a 3 om degree at :ammu after which she

joined the 553 ourse under the 8elhi ?ni.ersit&)

The accused Santosh ;umar Singh was also a student of 553 at ampus 5aw entre, %acult& of

law, 8elhi ?ni.ersit&)


11/23

the charges le.ied against her) She reiterated harassment b& the accused for the past one and a

half &ears from then)

On the da& of the murder, the deceased was alone at her residence at Vasant ;unj) The accused

came at her house)


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ANALYSIS OF THE CASE

There was a major hurdle in the case faced b& the prosecution' shodd& in.estigation and

tampering of e.idence) (ape was pro.ed b& the 8-A tests) There were se.eral points of

e.idence in fa.our of the prosecution in the case) %or e9ample, The broken .isor of the helmet of

Santosh and fracture in his hand besides the ! injuries on /attooFs bod& was in fa.our of the

prosecutionH so also the se.eral complaints b& /attoo to the police established moti.e and e&e

witness accounts pro.ed that Santosh was seen outside /attooFs house minutes before the

murder)!

Apart from this, the accused was also seen outside ampus 5aw entre on the da& of the

incident) The Trial :udge had also arri.ed at a categorical conclusion that on 2* :anuar&, !0 in

the e.ening at about ")$ p)m) the accused was seen standing outside the flat of the deceased b&

her immediate neighbor ;uppuswam&) Vikas Sharma was the witness who had sold some plastic

containers on the da& of incident to the deceased around ")2 p)m) just before the accused was

noticed outside the flat of the deceased which showed that the deceased was in her flat around

that time) It had been found to be so b& the Trial ourt) :aideep Singh Ahluwalia, the Securit&

Super.isor had also seen the accused at about $)* p)m) near the residence of the deceased) The

accused was also noticed b& O)P) Singh, Ad.ocate, on his bullet motor c&cle getting out of the

parking area of 3#!, Vasant ;unj and proceeding towards Vasant ;unj area around $)* p)m)

There was no material on record to establish that the witnesses had an& per.erse intention so as

to ad.ance the case of the prosecution in an& wa& b& resorting to tampering)2

It had also been pro.en that the accused possessed a helmet with a .isor and later on with the

in.estigations, it was found that the accused had hit the deceased with the helmet ! times) There

were parts of the .isor that contained some blood stains) There was enough e.idence to nail the

accused and no scope for his acuittal)

! http'www)legalser.icesindia)comarticlearticlecase#comment#on#pri&adarshini#matoo#case#

0""#!)html $th September, 2!" $)!+pm

2 http'indiatoda&)intoda&)instor&pri&adarshini#mattoo#case#santosh#singh#acuittal#e9poses#

manipulation#bpolice#cbi!2$$!2)html $th September, 2!" $)!1pm

!2


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There was a medical e9amination conducted of the accused)


14/23

The Trial ourt came down hea.il& on the role of entre for ellular and /olecular 3iolog&

6/37,


15/23

After a gap of se.en &ears, due to popular pressure and deli.er& of justice, this case was

reopened in the 8elhi


16/23

:ustice ()S) Sodhi of the 8elhi


17/23

After an e9amination, it was obser.ed that the murder took place in horrible circumstances) The

accused had mercilessl& strangulated Pri&adarshini with the heat con.ector wire)


18/23

This case highlights the helplessness of the judiciar& and the dela&ed justice) Chen the accused

was tried in the sessionFs court, the trial was bogged down b& crooked in.estigation probe and

unreliable e.idence) The main witnesses were not e9amined) So, the judgment gi.en in the

sessionFs court ma& be justified due to lack of e.idence)


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ROLE OF MEIA

/edia is one of the pillars of democrac&) One of the main functions of the media is to influence

public opinion) It is capable to change the whole .iew of the people at large) The media pla&s an

important role in bringing the accused to justice) The media is one of the important institutions of

the societ& which has the power to penetrate through the power houses in the societ& and ensure

that justice is meted out)

?nder Article !6!76a7 of the onstitution of India!", e.er& citi=en in India is granted the freedom

of speech and e9pression) This right also includes the freedom of Press, as interpreted b& the

Supreme ourt in the >9press -ewspapers .s) ?nion of India)!$%reedom of press guarantees the

freedom of the people to be updated about the happenings in the countr& and around the world)


20/23

5et us relate this concept to the Pri&adarshini /attoo case) Chen the case was tried in the

SessionFs court, the court acuitted Santosh ;umar Singh and ga.e him the benefit of doubt)


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!ON!L$SION

The Indian ourts are .er& powerful with .irtuall& no accountabilit&) 3ut the& do ha.e a

tendenc& to go wrong) Sometimes the judges ma& adopt a certain bias towards one part& instead

of being neutral)


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Thus this case e9plains us the impro.ements reuired in the Indian 5egal S&stem and the

regulation of press) The objecti.es of this stud& were fulfilled and all the research uestions were

answered)

22


23/23

/I/LIO2RAPHY

/oo+s &f&&3"

(atanlal and 8hirajlal, The ode of riminal Procedure, 2th

edition The onstitution of India # P)/)3akshi, ?ni.ersal 5aw Publishers

A&*icls &f&&3"

rooked Prosecution, conomic and Political Ceekl&, 68ec) !!#

!+, !7

TA8A' conomic and Political Ceekl&, 6/ar) 2$#*!, 27

Of riminals, /art&rs and Innocents, Sumanta 3anerjee, >conomic and Political

Ceekl&, 68ec) !0#22, 207

4bsi*s &f&&3"

www)jstor)org

www)manupatra)com

www)indiankanoon)org

www)legalser.icesindia)com

www)ndt.)com

www)timesofindia)indiatimes)com

www)indiane9press)com

www)thehindu)com

www)nchro)org

indiatoda&)intoda&)in

the.iewspaper)net

www)might&laws)in

www)westlawindia)com

www)rajdeepandjo&eeta)com

www)tribuneindia)com

2*

Lakshmi Srinivasan 37 BALLB JMC

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