Nagarajan Vs State of Tamil Nadu (Supreme Court of India)
The Supreme Court considered whether, in an appeal filed by an accused against conviction and sentence, the High Court could exercise suo motu revisional jurisdiction to convict the appellant for an additional offence and enhance the sentence when neither the State, victim nor complainant had filed an appeal or revision seeking such enhancement. The appellant had originally faced a charge under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 after the deceased, his neighbour, committed suicide along with her infant child. The Trial Court, however, acquitted him of the charge under Section 306 while convicting him under Sections 354 and 448 of the IPC for outraging the modesty of the deceased and house trespass. The Trial Court imposed sentences of simple imprisonment and fine for those offences.
The appellant challenged his conviction under Sections 354 and 448 before the High Court. During the pendency of that appeal, the High Court, on a prima facie appraisal of the Trial Court’s reasoning, considered that the acquittal under Section 306 required examination. Although the State had not appealed against that acquittal, the High Court directed suo motu registration of a criminal revision. The revision was registered separately and an Amicus Curiae was appointed to assist the Court. By its common judgment dated 29.11.2021, the High Court dismissed the accused’s appeal and allowed the suo motu revision, convicting him under Section 306 and enhancing the sentence.
