Delhi District Court
State vs Sonu Sharma on 1 April, 2026
IN THE COURT OF SH. ABHINAV AHLAWAT JUDICIAL
MAGISTRATE FIRST CLASS-09 (SOUTH-WEST) DWARKA
COURTS: DELHI
State Vs. : Sonu Sharma
FIR No : 244/2023
U/s : 279/338 IPC
P.S. : Jafarpur Kalan
1. CNR No. of the Case : DLSW020004562024
2. Date of commission of offence : 08.11.2023
3. Date of institution of the case : 05.01.2024
4. Name of the complainant : Harender Singh
5. Name of accused, parentage & : Sonu Sharma
address S/o Basant Ram
R/o H. no.756, Ground
Floor, Near Luharon
Wali Gali, Village
Khera Khurd, Delhi
6. Offence complained of : 279/338 IPC
7. Plea of the accused : Pleaded not guilty
8. Final order : Convicted
9. Date of final order : 01.04.2026
Argued by:- Mr. Pankaj Gulia, Ld. APP for the State
Mr. Rajesh Sharma, Ld. Counsel for accused.
Digitally signed
by ABHINAV
ABHINAV AHLAWAT
Page 1 of 24
Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma AHLAWAT 2026.04.01
16:37:44
+0530
JUDGMENT
BRIEF STATEMENT OF REASONS FOR THE DECISION:
FACTUAL MATRIX-
1. Briefly stated, the case of the prosecution is that on 08.11.2023 at about 06:30 AM, at Road towards Luksar cut from Temple, Mundhela Khurd, New Delhi, accused was driving tempo bearing registration no.DL-1LK-0158 (hereinafter, "offending vehicle") in a rash and negligent manner so as to endanger human life and personal safety of others and hit against one bicycle, thereby causing grievous injuries to Harender Singh and Jatin and thereby committed the offences punishable under Sections 279/338 of IPC, for which FIR no.244/2023 was registered at the police station Jafarpur Kalan, New Delhi.
INVESTIGATION AND APPEARANCE OF ACCUSED PERSONS
2. After registration of the FIR, the Investigating Officer (hereinafter, "IO") undertook investigation and on culmination of the same, the chargesheet against the accused person was filed. This court took the cognizance against the accused person and summons were issued to the accused. On his appearance, a copy of the chargesheet was supplied to the accused in terms of section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter, "CrPC"). On finding a prima facie case against the accused person, notice under Sections 279/338 of IPC was served upon the accused on 15.04.2024. The accused pleaded not guilty and claimed trial.
Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWATABHINAV Date:
AHLAWAT FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 2 of 24 2026.04.01 16:37:53 +0530 PROSECUTION EVIDENCE
3. During the trial, prosecution led the following oral and documentary evidence against the accused to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt: -
ORAL EVIDENCE PW-1 Jatin Injured PW-2 Jagbir Witness PW-3 Harender Singh Complainant PW-4 SI Ashok Investigating Officer PW-5 HC Bhim Singh Alongwith Investigationg Officer DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE Ex.PW2/A Arrest memo Ex.PW3/1 Statement of complainant Ex.PW3/2 Site plan Ex.PW3/3 Seizure memo qua documents of offending vehicle Ex.PW3/4 Seizure memo qua offending vehicle Ex.PW3/5 Seizure memo qua cycle Ex.PW4/A Rukka Ex.PW4/B Notice u/S 133 MV Act ADMITTED DOCUMENTS Ex.A1 FIR no.244/2023 alongwith certificate u/S 65B of IEA Ex.A2 MLC no.5720 Ex.A3 MLC no.5718 Ex.A4 Mechanical inspection report of cycle Ex.A5 Mechanical inspection report of tempo
4. To prove its case, prosecution examined the following witnesses, the same are as follows.
PW1 Jatin deposed that on 08.11.2023, in the morning, he alongwith his father was walking at Ganda Nala Road, near Mundhela Khurd Mandiri and his father was riding the bicycle and Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 3 of 24 2026.04.01 16:37:57 +0530 he was running ahead to bicycle. He stated that one vehicle Mahindra Champion came from behind and hit bicycle of his father and his father raised voice to him and he turned back and saw his father, and thereafter, he was also hit by the said tempo and he fell down on road and sustained injuries on his head. He stated that he become unconscious and he saw the registration number of the said tempo as DL-1LAK-0158. The witness correctly identified the offending vehicle as well as of the place of incident through photographs. In the cross-examination, he stated that the colour of the offending vehicle was green and he saw the registration number of the offending vehicle before he became unconscious.
5. PW2 Jagbir deposed that on 08.11.2023, he was coming after pouring water in his fields nearby Mundhela Khurd and when he came ahead to Nala Road, he found Harender Singh and his son Jatin were in injured condition, who were belonging to his village. He stated that Harender told him that one tempo hit him and his son and fled away and he followed the tempo as stated by Harender by his motorcycle and after some distance, he found one tempo (green colour) had overturned at the corner of nala and driver came out from the tempo and tried to run away. He stated that he with the help of villagers, apprehended the driver of tempo and Harender and his son were shifted to the hospital by some other person. He stated that he produced the driver of the tempo namely Sonu Sharma before police officials and police official arrested the driver of offending vehicle vide arrest memo Ex.PW2/A. The witness correctly identified the accused present in the court and the photographs of the offending vehicle as well as of the place of incident. In the cross-examination, he stated that he had not seen Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 4 of 24 2026.04.01 16:38:03 +0530 the accident himself but he was at the spot right after the incident had happened. He stated that after the offending vehicle turned turtle, accused was running from the spot and there was one liquor shop about ten yards away from the spot and persons present there also came out to see the incident. He stated that accused started running away from the spot towards one MCD picket which was situated ahead on the said road. He stated that he ran after the accused and apprehended him and handed over to one police official who was present at the said MCD picket and he stated to him that he had caused injuries to some persons by his vehicle. Thereafter, he proceeded to his duties and he apprehended the accused himself without any third person's help.
6. PW3 Harender Singh deposed that on 08.11.2023 at about 06:30 am, he and his son namely Jatin went to morning walk at Ganda Nala Road near Mundhela Khurd near Dada Khera Mandir. He stated that he was on cycle and his son namely Jatin was running ahead to his bicycle. He stated that suddenly, one green colour Mahindra Tempo bearing registration no.DL-1LAK-0158 came in a very high speed and the driver of the said tempo was driving the said tempo in a rash and negligent manner in zigzag manner. He stated that he hit him first and thereafter he fell down on road and driver of tempo also hit his son and he tried to stop the abovesaid tempo but driver of tempo ran away from the spot. He stated that he noted down the registration number of said tempo and in the meanwhile one of his known namely Jagbir came at the spot on motorcycle and he shared the whole incident with him. Thereafter, Jagbir chased the tempo and with the help of some villagers and public persons apprehended the driver of tempo. He stated that meanwhile one passerby came at the spot and he requested him to Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT Date: FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 5 of 24 AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 16:38:08 +0530 drop him and his son to his home and he accordingly dropped them. He stated that his family members shifted to him and his son at RTRM Hospital and someone made 100 number call to police. He stated that police officials came at the hospital at that time he and his son were under treatment and he was discharged from the hospital on the same day but his son was referred to Aakash hospital Dwarka by the RTRM hospital. He stated that police officials visited his house and recorded his statement on 08.11.2023 Ex.PW3/1 and prepared site plan at his instance Ex.PW3/2. He stated that he handed over the bill of the abovesaid cycle of his son to the police marked as Mark X. He stated that accused was arrested by the police in his presence and IO also seized the documents of the offending vehicle, offending vehicle and his son's cycle in his presence vide seizure memos Ex.PW3/3, Ex.PW3/4 and Ex.PW3/5 respectively. He stated that cycle of his son was released to him on superdari by the order of the court and IO also recorded his statement u/S 161 Cr. P. C. The witness correctly identified the accused present before the court and photographs of offending tempo and cycle. In the cross- examination, he stated that IO prepared the site plan at his instance and in his presence but he did not know whether IO recorded statement of any public person or not.
7. PW4 SI Ashok deposed that on 08.11.2023, he received one DD no.15A vide which he was informed regarding the MLC no.5718/23 of injured Jatin at RTRM hospital and thereafter, he alongwith HC Bheem Singh reached at the hospital and got to know that there were two injured persons, whose MLCs were numbered as 5718/23 and 5720/23 (Harender). He stated that the doctor declared injured Jatin unfit for statement and he met other Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 6 of 242026.04.01 16:38:13 +0530 injured person namely Harender who told him about the incident which was recorded by him and he prepared rukka Ex.PW4/A and got the FIR registered through HC Bheem Singh. He stated that he prepared the site plan at the instance of injured Harender at the spot and seized the offending vehicle i.e. Mahindra Champion bearing no.DL-1LAK-0158 and the cycle of the injured. He stated that during investigation, he gave notice u/S 133 MV Act to the owner of offending vehicle Ex.PW4/B and also seized his DL alongwith other documents relating to offending vehicle. He stated that he arrested the accused and released him on bail bonds vide memos Ex.PW2/A and got the mechanical inspection of both the accidental vehicle and cycle and placed their reports with the record. He stated that he also got the documents of accused and offending vehicle verified and obtained the MLCs of injured persons alongwith final opinion and finally submitted the report before the concerned court. The witness correctly identified the accused present before the court and photographs of the case properties. In the cross-examination, he stated that when he reached at the spot, he met accused Sonu Sharma and one Jagbir who had apprehended accused and he recorded statement of injured Jatin at his house. He stated that Jagbir told him that accused was apprehended by him with the help of some other public persons.
8. PW5 HC Bhim Singh deposed on the lines of PW4. In the cross-
examination, he stated that some villagers met him at the spot who had already apprehended accused.
9. On account of admission of accused u/s 294 Cr.P.C, remaining witnesses in the prosecution list were dropped and the formal proof Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWAT ABHINAV Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 7 of 24 AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 16:38:17 +0530 of the documents sought to be proved by them was dispensed with. No other PW was left to be examined; hence, PE was closed.
STATEMENT OF THE ACCUSED AND DEFENCE
EVIDENCE
10. Thereafter, before the start of defence evidence in order to allow the accused person to personally explain the incriminating circumstances appearing in evidence against him, the statement of the accused person was recorded without oath under section 281 r/w 313 CrPC on 19.04.2026, wherein he stated that on the date of incident when he was driving his vehicle Champion Tempo, when one child on his bicycle came in front of his vehicle all of a sudden, due to which his vehicle collided with him and after the said collision, his vehicle turned turtle on the side of the road. Accused further stated that he remained at the spot and some of the villagers also arrived at the spot. Accused categorically stated that there was no fault on his part. He further stated that he did not want to lead defence evidence.
FINAL ARGUMENTS
11. I have heard the Ld. APP for the State and Ld. Counsel for the accused at length. I have also given my thoughtful consideration to the material appearing on record.
12. It is argued by the Ld. APP for the State that all the ingredients of the offence are fulfilled in the present case. He has argued that prosecution witnesses have categorically deposed about the commission of offence and there is no ground to disbelieve their testimony. He further contends that the documentary evidence has Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 8 of 24 2026.04.01 16:38:24 +0530 proved the offence beyond reasonable doubt. As such, it is prayed that the accused be punished for the said offences.
13. Per contra, the Ld. Counsel for the accused has argued that the State has failed to establish its case beyond reasonable doubt. The Ld. Counsel further argued that the entire case of the prosecution is false and fabricated and the same is evident from the material inconsistencies and contradictions borne out from the material on record. It is argued that the identity of the accused being the driver of the offending vehicle is not established and prosecution has failed to discharge the burden cast upon it . As such, it is prayed that the accused be acquitted for the said offence.
INGREDIENTS OF THE OFFENCE
14. Section 279 IPC proscribes the driving of vehicle on a public way in such a rash or negligent manner so as to endanger human life or likely to cause hurt or injury to any person. Section 338 IPC prescribes punishment for causing grievous hurt to any person by such rash or negligent act.
15. The position of law with respect to offence u/s 279 IPC is discussed in the case of case of Abdul Subhan Vs. State (NCT of Delhi) 133(2006) DLT 562, wherein it was held that;
"In Badri Prasad (supra) the essential ingredients of Section 279 IPC are that there must be rash and negligent driving or riding on a public way and the act must be such so as to endanger human life or be likely to cause hurt or injury to any person. As observed in Badri Prasad (supra), to establish the offence either under Section 279 or Section 304A, the commission of a rash and negligent act has to be proved".
Further, what would constitute rash and negligent act has been described by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the matter of Mohd.
Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWATABHINAV FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 9 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:38:33 +0530 Aynuddin @ Miyan Vs. State of An- dra Pradesh decided on 28.07.2000, in the following words:-
"A rash act is primarily an over hasty act. It is opposed to a deliberate act. Still a rash act can be a deliberate act in the sense that it was done without due care and caution. Culpable rashness lies in running the risk of doing an act with reckless- ness and with indifference as to the consequences.
Criminal negligence is the failure to exercise duty with reasonable and proper care and precaution guarding against in- jury to the public generally or to any individual in particular. It is the imperative duty of the driver of a vehicle to adopt such reasonable and proper care and precaution."
16. Besides, the ingredients mentioned above, the identity of the accused as driver of the offending vehicle must also be established separately by the prosecution in order to establish the guilt of the accused.
It is trite law that the burden always lies upon the prosecution to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt on the basis of acceptable evidence and that the law does not permit the court to punish the accused on the basis of moral conviction or on account of suspicion alone. Also, it is well settled that accused is entitled to the benefit of every reasonable doubt in the prosecution story and such doubt entitles him to acquittal.
APPRECIATION OF EVIDENCE
17. In order to prove the case against the accused, the prosecution was under the obligation to prove the following for establishing the case against the accused person:
a. Identity of the accused being the driver of the offending vehicle. b. That the alleged incident is the result of rash and negligent driving of the accused at a public place which caused grievous injury to the injured PW1 Jatin and PW3 Harender.Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWAT
ABHINAV Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 10 of 24 AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 16:38:38 +0530 RE: IDENTITY OF THE ACCUSED
18. Material witness to prove the identity of accused being the driver of the offending vehicle as examined by the prosecution is PW1 Jatin (the minor child), PW3 Harender (father of injured PW1), and PW2 Jagbir, the witness who was present at the spot. Perusal of the testimony of injured PW1 reveals that he has stated in his testimony that as soon as he was hit by a tempo, he fell down and upon receiving injuries on his head he became unconscious. Although the child stated the registration number of the offending tempo and also identified the photographs of the offending vehicle and stated the color of the same to be green, but the injured PW1 could not recognize the accused person. The other witness, that is PW3, Harender Singh, who is the father of PW1, categorically identified the accused person and stated that the offending tempo had initially collided with him, whereafter he fell down and then the driver of the said tempo also hit his son. PW3 further stated that while he was trying to stop the said tempo, the driver of the tempo ran away, but in the meantime, one other person, Jagbir, came at the spot on his motorcycle and upon their chasing, the driver of the offending tempo was apprehended.
19. Similarly, PW2 Jagbir, who stated that he was doing his job at the MCD toll plaza near the spot of incident and he saw the incident and after Harinder told him that one tempo had hit him and his son and that the said tempo was trying to flee away, they followed the tempo on their motorcycle and after some distance the tempo overturned. Thereafter, the driver came out and was trying to run away, but with the help of the villagers apprehended the driver at the spot. PW2 also correctly identified the accused in his court testimony. Also, IO PW4 SI Ashok who stated that upon receiving Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 11 of 24 Date:
AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 16:38:46 +0530 the DD no. 15A, he reached at the RTRM hospital and after recording their statement, he went at the spot. IO stated in his cross-examination that he met the accused and one Jagbir at the spot who had apparently apprehended the accused there only.
20. Furthermore, in the statement of accused recorded under section 313 CRPC, accused stated that he was driving his tempo on the date of incident and one child on his bicycle suddenly came in front of his vehicle due to which his vehicle collided with him and after the collission his vehicle also turned turtle on the side of the road. Accused stated that he remained at the spot and some of the villagers also arrived at the spot. Accused has not led any defence evidence, however, as stated by accused himself that he was driving the offending vehicle, as such accused is not denying either his presence at the spot or the fact that he was driving the offending tempo on the date of the incident.
RE: ALLEGED ACCIDENT BEING THE RESULT OF RASH AND NEGLIGENT DRIVING OF THE ACCUSED AT A PUBLIC PLACE.
21. For establishing the rash and negligent act of driving the offending vehicle by the accused, the main testimony is again of injured PW1 and PW3, while PW2 is the witness of the spot who was present when the accused was apprehended. Injured PW1, who is a minor child stated that he along with his father were walking at the spot of incident while his father was riding the bicycle and he was running ahead of the bicycle, whereupon one Mahindra Champion tempo came from behind and hit the bicycle of his father and when his father raised voice to him, he turned and saw his father there, after he was also hit by the said tempo, whereupon he fell down on Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWAT ABHINAV Date: FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 12 of 24 AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 16:38:50 +0530 the road and received injuries on his head. Although PW1 could not identify the accused as he had become unconscious after being hit by the offending vehicle.
22. Similarly, the father of the injured PW1, that is PW3 Harinder, also stated that on the date of incident at about 6:30 a.m., he along with his son were doing morning walk at the spot while he was riding the bicycle and his son was running. PW3 categorically stated that his son was ahead of his bicycle when suddenly one Mahindra Tempo came at a very high speed and it hit him first, whereafter he fell down on the road and thereupon the Tempo also hit his son. PW3 stated that he tried to stop the aforesaid Tempo, but the driver of the Tempo ran away from the spot and in the meantime, when Jagbir came at the spot on his motorcycle and he shared the whole incident with him, thereafter he along with Jagbir chased the tempo and apprehended the driver accused. Nothing material came in the cross-examination of both injured PW1 and PW3, while the other eyewitness of the incident, PW2, stated that he was working at the MCD toll plaza and when he was coming, he found Harinder along with his son who both belonged to his village in injured condition. PW2 further stated that when Harinder told him that one Tempo had hit him and fled away, he followed the Tempo on his motorcycle and found the Tempo had turned turtle, whereupon they apprehended the accused person.
23. Here, it is relevant to highlight that it was held in Niranjan Singh vs. The State (Delhi Administration) 1977 Cri LJ 333, held that rashness consists in hazarding a dangerous or wanton act with the knowledge that it is so, and that it may cause injury. The criminality lies in such a case in running the risk of doing such an act with recklessness or indifference as to the consequences.
Digitally signed by ABHINAVABHINAV AHLAWAT Page 13 of 24 Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 16:38:55 +0530 Criminal negligence on the other hand is the gross and culpable neglect or failure to exercise that reasonable or proper care and precaution to guard against injury either to the public generally or to an individual in particular, which having regard to all the circumstances out of which the charge has arisen, it was the imperative duty of the accused person to have adopted.
24. Thus, the main criterion for deciding whether the driving which led to the accident was rash and negligent is not only the speed of the offending vehicle but deliberate disregard to the obligation of its driver to drive with due care and attention and taking a risk indifference as to the harmful consequences resulting from it. In a case of this nature, the test is whether the prosecution has proved that :
(i) the accused was driving the vehicle in such a manner as to create an obvious and serious risk of causing physical injury to some other person who might happen to be using the road or doing substantial damage to the property;
(ii) in driving the vehicle in that manner, the accused did so without having given any thought to the possibility of there being any such risk or, having recognized that there was some risk involved, had nonetheless gone on to take it; and
(iii) the rash or negligent act of the accused was the proximate cause of the injuries to the injured person.
25. The ocular testimony of both the injured PW1 and PW3 finds confirmation from the MLC of both the injured persons as they both had sustained injuries which are grievous in nature, which is Ex. A2 and A3 respectively. Perusal of the MLC of injured PW1, who is a minor child, reveals that he had received multiple fractures on occipital bone on the right side and right parietal bone extending up to the base of skull, while his father PW3 Harinder had received fractures on proximal shaft of fibula. Careful Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 14 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:39:01 +0530 examination of the MLCs of both injured reveals that injured PW1 had fractures involving the occipital bone on the right side along with the right parietal bone extending up to the base of the skull, which clearly indicates that the primary impact was sustained on the posterior aspect of the head, i.e., from behind. The nature and location of these injuries suggest that the force was applied from the rear side rather than the front. In such circumstances, any injury, if present on the frontal portion of the head or body, appears to be a consequential injury likely sustained due to the fall of the injured onto the ground following the initial impact, rather than being the result of a direct frontal assault.
26. Ld. defence counsel has vehemently argued that accused has been falsely implicated as the injured themselves had come in front of the vehicle and thereby the testimony of injured witnesses cannot be relied and accused is entitled to benefit of doubt.
27. At this stage, it is relevant to mention the matter as decided by Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Balu Sudamkhalde and another Vs. The State of Maharashtra Crl. Appeal No. 1910 of 2010 decided on 29.03.2023, laid down the principles for the evaluation of the testimony of injured eye witness, where it was observed as under:
-
"26. When the evidence of an injured eye-witness is to be appreciated, the under-noted legal principles enunciated by the Courts are required to be kept in mind.
The presence of an injured eye-witness at the time and place of the occurrence cannot be doubted unless there are material contradictions in his deposition.
Unless, it is otherwise established by the evidence, it must be believed that an injured witness would not allow the real culprits to escape and falsely implicate the accused.
Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT Page 15 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma 2026.04.01 16:39:07 +0530 The evidence of injured witness has greater evidentiary value and unless compelling reasons exist, their statements are not to be discarded lightly.
The evidence of injured witness cannot be doubted on account of some embellishment in natural conduct or minor contradictions.
If there be any exaggeration or immaterial embellishments in the evidence of an injured witness, then such contradiction, exaggeration or embellishment should be discarded from the evidence of injured, but not the whole evidence.
The broad substratum of the prosecution version must be taken into consideration and discrepancies which normally creep due to loss of memory with passage of time should be discarded.
27. In assessing the value of the evidence of the eye witnesses, two principal considerations are whether in the circumstances of the case, it is possible to believe their presence at the scene of occurrence or in such situations as would make it possible for them to witness the facts deposed to by them and secondly whether there is anything inherently improbable or unreliable in their evidence. In respect of both these considerations, circumstances either elicited from those witnesses themselves or established by other evidence tending to improbabilise their presence or to discredit the veracity of their statements, will have a bearing upon the value which a Court would attach to their evidence. Although in cases where the plea of the accused is a mere denial, the evidence of the prosecution witnesses has to be examined on its own merits, where the accused raise a definite plea or put forward a positive case which is inconsistent with that of the prosecution, the nature of such plea or case and the probabilities in respect of it will also have to be taken into account while assessing the value of the prosecution evidence."
28. The law on the point can be summarized to the effect that the testimony of the injured witness is accorded a special status in law. This is as a consequence of the fact that the injury to the witness is an in-built guarantee of his presence at the scene of the crime and because the witness will not want to let his actual assailant go unpunished merely to falsely implicate a third party for the commission of the offence. Thus, the deposition of the injured witness/ eye witness should be relied upon unless there are strong grounds for rejection of his evidence on the basis of major contradictions and discrepancies therein.
Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 16 of 24 2026.04.01 16:39:13 +0530
29. In addition to the above, even the investigation in the present matter appears to have been conducted in a callous and lackadaisical manner. First and foremost, the site plan seems to have been prepared by the IO in a very perfunctory manner, without disclosing the actual state of affairs as seen by him at the accidental spot. Nowhere does the site plan Ex.PW3/2 shows the directions from which the offending vehicle was coming nor the exact location where the offending vehicle and the injured's cycle were found. Instead, Mark A on the site plan has been depicted as the place where the accident was stated to have been occurred. Although the site plan bears the signature of injured PW3 but the site plan does not mention either the presence of the exact location of the bicycle or the point where the offending tempo was found turtled.
30. At this stage it is further pertinent to state in here that Hon'ble High Court of Delhi in Abdul Subhan vs State (NCT of Delhi) 133 (2006) DLT 562 had laid down guidelines with regard to the investigation to be conducted in the offence of accident:
13.1. In most cases I find that the site plans are not produced. Even the site plan that is produced is of a very unsatisfactory nature. It is, therefore, imperative that the investigating officer should be provided with maps of the roads drawn to scale so that accurate site plans can be produced in evidence for the appreciation of courts. The exact point of impact as well as tyre skid marks and the point at which the vehicles come to rest after the collision should be demarcated clearly. The observations with regard to the length of the tyre skid marks of the vehicles involved in the impact go a long way in indicating the speeds at which the vehicles were traveling. This would enable the courts to examine the evidence in a much more objective manner and the courts would not be faced with vague and subjective expressions such as high speed". 13.2. The mechanical inspection reports that are prepared are also, I find, in a majority of cases, of a very superficial and cursory nature. The inspection ought to be carried out Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWAT ABHINAV FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 17 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:39:22 +0530 by qualified personnel who are able to indicate in their reports the exact physical conditions of the vehicles. They should be able to point out with exactitude the damage suffered by the vehicles as a result of the impact. The mechanical inspection report should indicate all the telltale signs of the collision such as the paint of one vehicle rubbing off on the other. It should also indicate as to whether the vehicles were mechanically sound or not prior to the impact so as to enable the court to arrive at a conclusion as to whether the collision took place due to human rashness or negligence or mechanical failure beyond human control.
13.3. As a rule, photographs ought to be taken not only of the vehicles involved in the collision but also of the site and surrounding areas so that the exact topography can be easily discerned by courts.
13.4. The prevalent weather conditions must be noted by the investigating officer. This would go to establish as to whether the road was slippery due to rain; whether there was poor visibility due to fog or mist etc. 13.5. Furthermore, the path of movement of the vehicles must be sought to be established in the course of investigation and not be left open to ambiguity and doubt as in the present case.
13.6. The drivers of the vehicle involved must also be subjected to tests to reveal whether they had consumed any intoxicants.
13.7. Proper investigation of such accidents would go a long way in aiding the criminal justice system in convicting those who are guilty and acquitting those who are innocent.
A shoddy investigation will only point in one direction and that is in the acquittal of all whether they are guilty or whether they are innocent. Because, no criminal court would (and ought not to) convict any person merely on the basis of conjectures, assumptions, probabilities. All elements of subjectivity need to be eliminated and the investigation should be such that, when a charge sheet is filed, the court is presented with a case which when taken objectively would lead to the inescapable conclusion that a conviction is maintainable.
19. The site plan so placed on record is neither scaled site plan nor is proved by the prosecution. Furthermore, no photographs of the surrounding sites has been taken and placed on record by IO. As such the prosecution has failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that alleged accident took place due to rash or negligent driving of accused."
Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 18 of 24 2026.04.01 16:39:27 +0530
31. Therefore, it is clear that the site plan is not prepared as per the guidelines and it is nowhere highlighting the correct state of affairs of the accident in question. Neither the site was inspected for any blood marks or skid marks nor the distance between the actual location of cycle and tempo was mentioned. The only photograph Ex.PW2(colly) are the photographs of the offending vehicle and the bicycle which were taken at the spot but again the same does not mentioned the distance between the two. However, it is evident from the photographs that offending tempo that is was found turned on its side which corroborates the version of witnesses.
32. Further, it is pertinent to state here that as per mechanical inspection report of offending vehicle bearing no.DL-1LAK-0158 which is Ex.A5, the following damages were found which are as follows:
(i) Front wind shield total damage with rubber.
(ii) Right side front indicator damage.
(iii) Left side head light damage.
(iv) Left side battery box damage.
(v) Left side dent on front show carrier and lower side with scratches near H. L.
(vi) Left side scratches on RVM glass.
(vii) Left side scratches on door.
(viii) Left side scratches on carrier body on front corner and battery box.
(ix) Rear bumper channel bent on right side.
(x) Right side door glass came out.
(xi) Right side scratch on door.
Similarly, following damages were found on the victim's bicycle as per mechanical inspection report Ex.A4 which are as follows:
(i) Rear mud guard mounting clip bent.
(ii) Rear brake lever and brake wire damage.
33. Therefore, it is clear that both the vehicles had sustained damages with the slight damage on the rear of the bicycle showing that it had made contact with offending vehicle due to which PW3 fell Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 19 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:39:32 +0530 and this also corroborates with the version of the father of PW1 that is PW3 who stated that he was ridding the bicycle with his son running ahead. Furthermore, as stated by IO PW4 and PW5 who was accompanying the IO that when they went at the spot they had met the accused person who was already apprehended by the public person there after which he was arrested vide arrest memo Ex.PW2/A. Interestingly no medical examination of the accused person was got conducted by the IO during the course of investigation. The said anomaly is very relevant as there is no medical document of the accused, which could have showcased ruled out the fact whether he was drunk or not.
34. It is profitable to mention the judgment of Paras Yadav and others Vs. State of Bihar, AIR 1999 SC 644, 1999 AIR SCW 296 wherein it was held that a defective investigation is not always fatal to the case of prosecution if the ocular testimony is found credible and cogent. While in such a case, the court has to be circumspect in evaluating the evidence, a faulty investigation cannot in all cases be a determinative factor to throw out a credible prosecution version. It is the settled law that if victim's testimony is consistent, truthful and corroborated by other evidences, it can outweigh investigative short comings.
35. In the instant case as stated above, IO has not got conducted the medical examination of the accused after he was formally arrested in the present care. Accused has merely pleaded that the child came all of a sudden in front of his vehicle and for the same reason the incident occurred. A careful perusal of the site plan along with the photographs of the place of occurrence clearly demonstrates that the spot is an open stretch of road with minimal vehicular movement. In the present case, despite the availability of sufficient Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 20 of 24 2026.04.01 16:39:36 +0530 space and the absence of congestion, the offending tempo being driven by the accused collided with a child and his father who were on a bicycle. This circumstance, in itself, speaks volumes about the manner of driving adopted by the accused. It reflects a clear lack of due care, alertness and reasonable foresight expected of a prudent driver. The collision, occurring in such an uncongested area, rules out any plausible justification based on traffic pressure or unavoidable circumstances, and instead points towards rashness and negligence on the part of the accused. The accused, therefore, failed to exercise the degree of caution that the situation demanded, thereby endangering human life and resulting in the unfortunate incident.
36. Further, although accused has pleaded that he has been falsely implicated in the present case by the victim, however, accused has not stated the reasons for the same as there appears to be no inimical relations between the accused and victim. It is a settled law that witness is normally to be considered independent unless he or she springs from sources which are likely to be tainted and usually means the witness has caused, such as enmity against accused, to wish to implicate him falsely. It is true that due to previous enmity, there is tendency to drag an innocent person against whom a witness has a grudge but in the absence of evidence or material to show such inimical relations no natural presumptions can be taken for false implications. There is no reason to doubt the testimonies of injured.
37. After careful perusal of the testimonies as mentioned above, it is crystal clear that accused was driving his vehicle in a manner which would clearly amount to rash driving. Rashness has been established against the accused beyond reasonable doubt. It is also Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWAT ABHINAV FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 21 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:39:42 +0530 established that the accused was negligent for not taking the reasonable care towards his surroundings. The fact the accused was driving the offending tempo in such a manner that he failed to notice a bicycle and a child, causing injuries to him.
38. Negligent act means failure to take proper care and precautions jeopardizing the lives of other persons. It means omission to do something which a reasonable and prudent person guided by the considerations which ordinarily regulate human affair would do or doing something which a prudent and reasonable person guided by similar considerations would not do. Negligence is not an absolute term but is a relative one, it is rather a comparative term. It is difficult to state with precision any mathematically exact formula by which negligence or lack of it can be infallibly measured in a given case. Whether there exists negligence per se or the course of conduct amounts to negligence will normally depend upon the attending and surrounding facts and circumstances which have to be taken into consideration by the Court.
39. It is amply clear from the above, that the rash or negligent driving has to be examined in the light of the facts and circumstances of the given case. In fact, it is incapable of being construed or seen in isolation, it must be examined in light of the attendant circumstances. A person who drives a vehicle on the road is liable to be held responsible for the act as well as for the result. Likewise in the instant case, keeping in view the testimony of PW1 and PW3, it is crystal clear that the accused was driving the offending vehicle in rash or negligent manner. The fact that injured persons sustained grievous injuries due to rash and negligent driving of accused is made out beyond all reasonable doubts. The testimony of injured witness inspires confidence despite various short Digitally signed by ABHINAV AHLAWAT ABHINAV FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 22 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:39:48 +0530 comings in the investigation conducted by the IO. Reliance can be placed on the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Amar Singh Versus The State (NCT of Delhi), Criminal Appeal No. 335 of 2015, wherein it was held that, "As a general rule the Court can and may act on the testimony of single eye witness provided, he is wholly reliable. There is no legal impediment in convicting a person on the sole testimony of a single witness. That is the logic of Section 134 of the Evidence Act, 1872. But if there are doubts about the testimony Courts will insist on corroboration. It is not the number, the quantity but quality that is material. The time-honoured principle is that evidence has to be weighed and not counted. On this principle stands the edifice of Section 134 of the Evidence Act. The test is whether the evidence has a ring of truth, is cogent, credible and trustworthy or otherwise."
40. In these circumstances, based on the testimony of PW1 and PW3, which is not only reliable but also inspires confidence, rash and negligent act of driving of the offending vehicle by the accused has been proved beyond all reasonable doubts.
CONCLUSION
41. The upshot of the foregoing discussion is that the prosecution evidence, both oral and documentary, including the surrounding circumstances leads to only conclusion that the incident could not have happened but for the fault of the accused only. The prosecution has been able to establish beyond reasonable doubts all the basic ingredients of the offence of section 279/338 IPC.
42. Thus, it is held that that accused was driving the offending vehicle in a rash and negligent manner as to endanger human life and that because of such act of accused, he caused grievous injury upon the injured. Resultantly, the accused Sonu Sharma S/o Basant Ram is Digitally signed by ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 23 of 24 AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:39:53 +0530 hereby convicted of the offences punishable under Sections 279/338 of The Indian Penal Code, 1860.
43. Let the convict be heard separately on the quantum of sentence. Copy of this judgment be given free of cost to the convict.
Digitally signed by ABHINAVAnnounced in the open court ABHINAV AHLAWAT Date:
AHLAWAT 2026.04.01 on 01.04.2026 in the presence 16:39:59 +0530 of the accused.
(Abhinav Ahlawat) Judicial Magistrate First Class-09, Dwarka, Delhi/01.04.2026 Note:- This judgment contains 26 pages and each page has been Digitally signed by signed by me. ABHINAV ABHINAV AHLAWAT AHLAWAT Date:
2026.04.01 16:40:05 +0530 (Abhinav Ahlawat) Judicial Magistrate First Class-09, Dwarka, Delhi/01.04.2026 FIR No.244/2023, PS Jafarpur Kalan State vs. Sonu Sharma Page 24 of 24