My friend is charged with ipc 338 in an accident case and he is on regular bail now. Our advocate is suggesting us to contest the case till trails. I want to understand how safe is this option.
How can an public prosecutor prove rash and negligence of driving in these type of cases.
It was an accident and he even took the injured to hospital. He belongs to poor family and sole bread earner and his life will be ruined if the judgement is jail
Please advise us what should we do now.
As per your concerned query!
In a criminal case, the burden of proof is on the prosecution to prove the case against the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. The burden never shifts. An accused enjoys the presumption of innocence. There is no duty on an accused person to purge himself of guilt. Where there is lingering doubt, the accused person is given the benefit of the doubt. A Court cannot draw an inference of guilt from mere suspicion.
section 338 is compoundable within the scheme of the code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 by the injured with the permission of the court.
To attract the provision of section 338 of Cr. PC, the key ingredients of the offence need to be fulfilled
1. accused did some act
2. He did it rashly and negligently
3. The act was such as to endanger human life or personal safety of others.
4. Grievous hurt was caused as a consequence of such an act.
Referring case laws
P.B Desai v. State of Maharashtra (2013)
State vs. Vikram Singh (2019)
Hope it clarifies the issues!
Regards
Minakshi Bindhani
