STATE OF TAMIL NADU REP BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE vs Gokul — 390/2025

Case Summary: STC 390/2025 Court's Decision: The District Magistrate-cum-Judicial Magistrate acquitted both accused (Gokul and Surya) under IPC sections 294(b), 352, and 506(1), invoking the benefit of doubt under CrPC section 248(1). Key Reasoning: The court found that the prosecution failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt. While the complainant initially provided detailed testimony about the alleged assault and abuse, his testimony contained significant inconsistencies and contradictions. Other prosecution witnesses (PW2 and PW3) were not present during the alleged incident and could provide no direct evidence. The court noted that the complainant later executed a settlement deed under CrPC section 320, indicating the dispute was of a purely personal nature. Applying the principle from *Madan Mohan Abbot v. State of Punjab*, the court concluded that maintaining criminal proceedings with no likelihood of conviction would wastefully burden the judiciary, and therefore discharged the accused. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.