State of Gujarat vs RAJESHBHAI RAVJIBHAI VAGHELA Advocate - A B JOSHI — 239/2026

The court acquitted the accused, Rajeshbhai Ravjibhai Vaghela, of charges under Section 65(a) of the Gujarat Prohibition Act 1949 for alleged illegal possession of liquor. The court found that the prosecution failed to establish its case beyond reasonable doubt, noting critical gaps: no independent witnesses were examined, the panch (witness) testimony did not corroborate the charge sheet, no FSL (Forensic Science Laboratory) report confirmed the seized material was alcohol, and the panchayat record itself remained unproven. Applying precedent principles that when panchas become complainant witnesses and evidence contains contradictions, the accused deserves benefit of doubt. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.