STATE OF BIHAR vs NARESH YADAV . — Crl.A. No. 256 - 258/1997

Summary of State of Bihar v. Naresh Yadav (Crl.A. No. 256-258/1997) The Supreme Court upheld the High Court's acquittal of 13 respondents charged with murder and arms offenses in the April 1985 killing of Mukhiya Keshari Nandan Singh. The Court found the prosecution's eyewitness evidence unreliable, noting that no witnesses came forward when the investigating officer arrived at 7:20 a.m., despite claiming to have witnessed the incident; the informant (PW-9) appeared only at 9:00 a.m., over 2.5 hours later. The Court also identified material contradictions, including false claims about the deceased's revolver and Lakhandeo's arrest, which undermined the prosecution's credibility. Dismissing the appeals, the Court concluded the evidence did not prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.