Criminal Appeal

Right of appeal cannot be availed unless it is conferred in a clear manner by some enactment or statute or the rules having the sanctity of some law

Such right is to be specifically provided for and the same cannot arise by implication

­Right of appeal is not a mere matter of procedure but is a vested right of a party from the commencement of the action in the Court of first instance

Parties by agreement cannot confer jurisdiction upon a Court

Right of appeal depends upon the language as used in the statute and if the words of statute are precise and unambiguous, they must be held to have their natural and ordinary meaning

Order passed by any Court irrespective of the fact whether it is ordinary criminal Court or Accountability Court, there would be no appeal unless it is provided for by the statute

Right of appeal cannot be assumed unless expressly given by the statute.

Plea taken by the accused at the appellate stage could be considered in the light of evidence on record.

Accused seeking reveiw of a judicial order must surrender to the process of law and if he 'decamps, he loses right of audience and his appeal can be dismissed and sentence of death confirmed on merits in his absence.

If a Court not possessed of jurisdiction to try a case wrongly assumes the same and exercises power not vested in it an passes a judgment in consequence thereof appeal from its decision would lie in the same manner as an appeal would lie from a decision made with jurisdiction.

Appeal could not be dismissed for non-prosecution.

Conviction of accused by taking different view and explaining infirmities in prosecution witnesses not proper.

Grounds not urged at hearing of petition, according to established practice, cannot be urged in review for mitigation of sentence.

Absence o: appellant or his pleader does not relieve Court from duty of perusing record and giving reasons in support of judgment that there is no sufficient ground for interfering with conviction and sentence, of appellant

Case remanded to High Court for hearing of appeal and for decision afresh on merits.

Judge of High Court who admitted an appeal or disposed of a number of petitions for suspension of sentence is not compelled to hear and dispose of that appeal when same comes up for hearing.

Appeal (criminal)- Sentence seldom involves a question of law of general public importance and was essentially a discretionary process

Supreme Court, on question of sentence as imposed by High Court, usually shows attitude of restraint and caution, once it is found that sentence awarded was a legal one

High Court in awarding sentence of life imprisonment on a capital charge not committing violation of any principle of law

Intervention of Supreme Court, held, not attracted, notwithstanding that same reasons given in High Court Judgment, e.g. Provisions of 5.382-B, Cr.P.C. may in context be out of place.

[Sentence].

Art. 185-Criminal appeal-New fact not brought before High Court-Supreme Court not to advert to same in appeal.

S. 410-Criminal appeal-Appeal of accused, a fugitive from justice dismissed even though appeal of his co-accused accepted.-[Appeal (criminal)].

S. 302-[Murder-case]-Appreciation of evidence-Criminal appeal-Benefit of doubt-Fact of eye-witnesses being not unanimous on a point creating 'doubt about presence of such accused at time of and participation in occurrence especially when matter such as could allow no possibility of making any mistake-Pistol allegedly taken into custody by police yet no crime empties found on spot to match pistol or establish its use in occurrence-Question of appreciation and evaluation of evidence qua participation of accused being within province of High Court and if in circumstances as above High Court extended benefit of doubt to accused, order of High Court, held, cannot be said to suffer from any such legal or factual infirmity as to warrant interference by Supreme Court.-[Evidence].

Criminal appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Reasonable doubt attaching to worthiness of ocular testimony Witnesses for prosecution not appearing to have witnessed incident Discrepancies in statements of prosecution witnesses irreconcilable-Time of death not established as alleged by prosecution-Dead body of victim appearing to have been discovered in morning and F. I. R. thereafter lodged charging appellants on suspicion, such fact established due to another person having been implicated in offence subsequently-Appellants in F. I. R. not described as disciples but as party men of one B-Interest of deceased in evicting B from shop belonging to A and to foil his attempt to reoccupy it with assistance of A not clearly shown as motive for offence viz., appellants being disciples of B killed , deceased to avenge insult meted out to their religious guide-B on other hand found to have been evicted a year earlier and to have left village four months prior to incident-

Courts below feeling and from perusal of record specifically holding case as one of further inquiry and passing relevant order on such basis, High Court, held, would not be justified to interfere with such order unless such order be perverse, arbitrary, fanciful or not borne out from record-Criminal Procedure Code (V of 1898), S. 497 (2).

Withdrawal-Appellant's counsel seeking permission to withdraw from case- Withdrawal allowed but Court proceeding with hearing of appeal, appellant having no right to abandon appeal at stage of hearing.-[Abandonment of appeal].

Evidence-Corroboration-Nature of corroboratory evidence required to prove guilt of accused-Must depend not only upon whether witnesses are interested or disinterested but also upon whether witnesses are witnesses of truth.-[Evidence].

Criminal Appeal Abandonment of-Appeal against acquittal (filed by private complainant) by Special Leave of Supreme Court-Appellant not entitled to abandon appeal at his sweet will after obtaining leave.

Federal Court-Criminal appeal-Orders passed in exercise of revisional jurisdiction by High Court-Not ordinarily interfered with by Federal Court-Discretion, however, not exercised judicially High Court's order set aside and that of lower Court restored.

Appreciation of evidence-Not function of Supreme Court.

Constitution of Pakistan (1962), Art. 58-Appeal to Supreme Court-Criminal appeal-Detenu, after his release pursuant to High Court's order fleeing to a foreign country and no longer amenable to jurisdiction of Pakistan authorities -Government's appeal against order of such release, in circumstance, held, infructuous and dismissed.

Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302 read with S. 304, Part II-Murder-Accused armed with drats, sword and hatchet causing six incised wounds on deceased's arm, legs, knee and ankle with such brutal force that such limbs hang only by a tag of skin-Contention that locale of injuries indicated absence of intention to kill for otherwise accused could have chopped off deceased's head-Accused's intention, held, was not only to kill but to cause maximum pain till victim expired-Intention-Judged by nature of act performed Injuries being sufficient in ordinary course of nature to cause death and victim having expired within a few minutes of receiving injuries, offence, held, fell squarely within S. 302.

Letters Patent (Lahore), Cl. 10-Limitation-Tribunals below in dealing with appeal falling to apply their minds to question of limitation-Letters Patent Bench of High Court, held, right in setting aside orders and remanding case for disposal of appeal in accordance with law-Leave refused by Supreme Court.

Criminal appeal-Charge fully brought home to accused appellants-Erroneous reasoning adopted by lower appellate Court in acquitting co-accused-Cannot benefit convicted accused-appellants-Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302/34.

…Ss. 410 & 423Criminal appeal-Counsel for appellant not pressing appeal on merits but praying merely for reduction of sentence-High Court, in circumstance, not considering appeal on merits but otherwise reducing sentence as prayed for-Whether High Court relieved of its duty to consider criminal appeal on merits even if it is pressed only on ground of sentence-Special Leave to Appeal granted by Supreme Court to consider question.

Appeal to Supreme Court-Criminal appeal-Sentence, quantum of-Federal Court does not entertain question of, unless sentence illegal or grossly improper.

Criminal appeal-Lower Court observing that evidence of interested witnesses be examined with utmost care and caution but at same time failing to show in judgment any careful scrutiny of evidence-Appraisement of evidence afresh by Supreme Court.

Criminal appeal Appreciation of evidence-Weight to be attached to prosecution evidence and credibility of witnesses-Discretion of final Court of facts and not matters for determination of Supreme Court.

Appreciation and weight of evidence-No interference by Supreme Court.

Criminal appeal-Sentence Supreme Court ordinarily does not interfere with.

Criminal appeal-Finding of fact-Lower Court overlooking material portions of evidence Evidence scrutinized by Supreme Court in appeal.

Criminal Appeal -Appeal against acquittal-convicted of murder on appeal acquitted by High Co Ocular evidence creating a distrust in mind that story forward by prosecution is more conjectural than High Court on critical analysis rejecting such evidence outright as unworthy of credit-Interference with acquittal accused recorded by High Court-Held, not called for e it could be said that appraisement of evidence by High was erroneous and another view favourable to prosecution possible.

Criminal appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Supreme Court does not go into.

Criminal appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Supreme Court does not normally undertake.

Appeal to Supreme Court-Criminal appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Supreme Court ordinarily does not go into.

Appeal to Supreme Court-Criminal Appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Courts below found erring if' at all on side of caution and giving benefit of doubt to some accused-No interference called for.

Ss. 300, 302 & 326-Presence of requisite knowledge or intention under S. 300 not clear Conviction under S. 302 altered to one under S. 326.

S. 337 and Evidence Act (I of 1872), S. 133-Approver-Conviction based on evidence of-Corroboration in material particulars necessary

approver's near relationship with accused-Does not remove taint from his testimony.

Appeal (criminal)-Vested right-Right vests the moment proceeding or lis commences or prosecution lodged-Transfer of case from ordinary Court to Special Military Court-Entails loss of such right-Regulation so worded as not to include cases which became pending before its promulgation.

Criminal appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Supreme Court normally does not reappraise evidence unless there is some transgression of legal provision or principle applying to assessment of evidence-Special Leave to Appeal refused-Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302.

Criminal appeal-Appreciation of evidence-View taken by Courts below, of evidence against accused, neither unreasonable nor opposed to any principle governing appreciation of evidence-Supreme Court would not enter upon fresh re-appraisal of evidence-Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302.

Criminal Appeal-Appreciation of evidence-Supreme Court normally accept that reached by Court below.

Criminal Appeal Appreciation of evidence by trial Court must be given due weight and importance-Trial Court's judgment of credibility of witness

Not to be lightly discarded

Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302.

Appeal to Supreme Court-Criminal appeal-Offences under S's. 301 & 307-Prayer for bail pending appeal refused-Appeal, however, ordered to be fixed for hearing expeditiously.

Criminal appeal-Re-appraisal of evidence-Not function of Supreme Court unless there has been departure from known principles on which guilt or innocence of accused adjudged-Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302.

Art. 58 - Criminal appeal-Leave to appeal to Supreme Court-Granted where there was evidence of a clash between two fully armed groups and it was urged that "High Court should have examined evidence, as to manner in which clash came about, with greater care".

Joint appeal by two accused-Evidence, nevertheless, assessed separately against each-Criminal Procedure Code (V of 1898), S. 410 Penal Code (XLV of 1860), S. 302.

Criminal Appeal Appeal (criminal)-Two appeals heard together-Each appellant entitled to consideration of case separately and individually.

Criminal Appeal Case cannot be argued on grounds not taken in lower Courts.

Criminal Appeal Appeal (criminal)-Time-barred-Treated as revision.