2025 INSC 1453
Page 1 of 13 Crl. Appeal @SLP Crl. No.15786 of 2024
Reportable
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
Criminal Appeal No. of 2025
(@Special Leave Petition (Crl.) No.15786 of 2024)
Kiran
...Appellant
Versus
The State of Karnataka
...Respondent
J U D G M E N T
K. VINOD CHANDRAN, J.
Leave granted.
2. A widow, with five children was torched to death, for
not having responded to the lustful advances of the accused,
a relative by marriage.
3. This Court had issued notice on 08.11.2024, limited to
the question as to whether the trial court was correct in
imposing life imprisonment meaning that it will be till the
end of his natural life and directing the accused to be not
granted the benefit of remission under Section 428 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure, 19731.
1 for short, the Cr.PC
Page 2 of 13 Crl. Appeal @SLP Crl. No.15786 of 2024
4. Despite the limited notice, we have gone through the
evidence to convince ourselves on the conviction,
especially since the witnesses, including the daughter of the
deceased, an eyewitness turned hostile. The crime was
committed on 01.01.2014 at 11:30 pm when the accused was
alleged to have entered the shanty in which the deceased
was living with her daughters. The woman having not
succumbed to the sexual advances made, which had been
continuing for some time earlier, th...