Charred bodies of dead men do tell tales: Court

Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, May 27

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that the charred bodies of dead men do tell tales. It said the chances of an adult’s body burning beyond a trace were improbable and bones in human ash could still be identified.

16-year-old case

Ruling came in the 16-year-old case where two domestic and farm help were accused of murdering another before setting his body on fire

The ruling by the Bench of Justice Rajiv Sharma and Justice Harinder Singh Sidhu came in a 16-year-old case where two domestic and farm help were accused of murdering another before setting his body afire. The two, Mohan and Raju, had moved the high court challenging the judgment of the Karnal Additional Sessions Judge in June 2005 that convicted and sentenced them to life imprisonment for murder and common intention under Section 302 and 34 of the IPC.

Appreciating the assistance rendered by legal aid counsel VK Sachdeva, the Bench observed the burnt bones and ashes weighed approximately 250 gm. The forensic science laboratory report in the matter stated that opinion could not be given regarding the victim’s sex and age, as the bones were too “fragmentary and insufficient”.

Referring to ‘A Textbook of Medical Jurisprudence and Toxicology’ by Modi, the Bench observed burnt bones and ashes in some instances were forwarded to the medical officer for inspection, if the police suspected foul play after a body was partially or completely burnt. In an ordinary house fire, the temperature seldom exceeded 1200°C. It was, as such, unlikely that an adult’s body would burn so completely as to leave no trace. If the body was not completely consumed, fragments of bones left would afford sufficient evidence to indicate whether they were of human.

The Bench further observed: “The combustion of a body is rarely so complete as to reduce it to ashes. Hence, by shifting the ashes through sieves, fragments of bones can be collected and identified by a careful study. Incineration of an adult human body for the purpose of cremation requires one-and-a-half-hour at 1600-1800 degree Celsius and the resultant ashes weigh about 4-6 kg. Such human ash contains bone pieces which may still be identified,”

Besides, fragments of clothing could be found protected even on the “most badly charred body” in folds of skin, flexures of armpits and groins. Traces of jewellery, too, could be found.

The Bench added the police did not recover any clothes. In case the victim was wearing clothes, the same could have been intact with the bones. Also, the police did not send the bones for DNA examination. Setting aside the trial court judgment while acquitting the two, the Bench asserted the prosecution failed to prove the case against the appellants beyond reasonable doubt.