Appeals Under Criminal Law from Conviction/Acquittal

Author: Diksha Patole

Edited by: A I Sugandesh

 

INTRODUCTION:

“Is an appeal the insignia of democratic assets integrally entwined with the machinery provided for dispensation of justice.”

For a casual observer, the criminal proceeding may invariably conclude as soon as the verdict is entered, or punishment is imposed. In the conduct of criminal proceedings, certain steps are essential, from escorting the accused to the court to the final judgement. But there are times when after the defendant has been convicted or acquitted, it is not yet the last stage of the proceeding. An accused person is under the law allowed to request for an appeal or review of a conviction that was made against him or her. In criminal cases, the main role of an appeal is to make sure that justice is done to the appellant. The right to appeal is increasingly omnipresent. In most jurisdictions, the right to appeal against conviction and sentence is a right which may be constitutional or statutory. However, this has not always been the circumstances. The right to appeal is a recent addition to the process of common law criminal judgments.  

Everyone knows that people are not perfect, and they can make mistakes, and their decisions can be wrong. As such to rectify the errors dominating their judgement the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 has made available the provisions of “appeals” and “revision” where the higher courts of law have the jurisdiction to reconsider the erroneous decision made by the courts subordinate. Criminal justice is the disposition that aims at providing justice by punishing the offender and at the same time protecting society from such individuals. As is often said, it is desirable to release ten guilty men rather than have an innocent man/man suffer a warranted conviction.

KEYWORDS: appeal, acquittal, criminal procedure code, supreme court, high court, Indian penal code, conviction

MEANING, DEFINITION & EXPLANATION:

In criminal law, an “appeal” is a challenge to a previous legal determination. An appeal is directed towards a legal power higher than the power making the challenged determination.

Definitions given by renowned legal scholars and judges:

  1. According to Lord Denning “An appeal is a process by which a higher court reviews the decision of a lower court. It is a continuation of the original proceeding, with the appellate court examining the correctness of the lower court’s judgement”
  2. According to Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes “An appeal is the right of a litigant to seek a review of a judgement, to have it reconsidered by a higher tribunal, ensuring that justice is not compromised by errors or misjudgement.”

The term “conviction” means a finding of guilt (including a plea of nolo contendere), an imposition of sentence, or both, by a judicial body charged with the responsibility.

  1. According to Justice Benjamin Cardozo “Conviction is the legal acknowledgement of guilt, established by a verdict of the jury or a decision of a judge, following a trial where the evidence presented meets the standard of proof required by law.”
  2. According to Sir Fitz James Stephen “A conviction is the result of a trial where the accused is found guilty of the charges against them, establishing their culpability beyond a reasonable doubt.”

An “acquittal” is a resolution of some, or all of the factual elements of the offence charged. A not guilty finding is an adjudication that proof at a prior proceeding was insufficient to overcome all reasonable doubt of the guilt of the accused.

  1. According to Justice Louis Brandeis “An acquittal is a declaration of innocence, finding by the court that the evidence is insufficient to convict the accused, ensuring that no one is punished without due proof of guilt.”
  2. According to Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer “Acquittal means the absolution of the accused from the criminal charge, reflecting the principle that it is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffers.”

An “Appeal against conviction” is a key legal remedy, that gives a convicted individual a chance to review or re-examine their judgement by a higher court, to ensure accuracy and fairness.

“Appeal against acquittal” ensures that the errors in the law or procedure do not acquit an individual guilty of a crime.

HISTORY AND EVOLUTION OF APPEAL:

Appeals of criminal law about conviction and acquittal have been discussed with historical and evolutionary views to show that there have always been attempts to make a legal system or the judicial process fair.

The early civilisations such as the Greek and Roman legal epochs did have a simple or fundamental form of appeal. In Rome, there was provocatio which informed the citizens to appeal against the decision of a magistrate to an upper one. The Ancient Indian legal system had texts such as Manusmriti and Arthshastra, which also laid down the procedures of litigation and appeals.

It is noted that during the medieval age, the administering of justice in many parts of India was under Islamic law with Qazis (judges) in charge of such legal systems. There were arguments referred to the higher powers, such as the Sultan or the Emperor, in the Mughal Empire the Emperor was held the ultimate appellate authority.

The Britishers arrived in India in the form of the English East India Company, for their self-governance they had their judiciary to provide justice to the British people and later they started controlling the natives that is the Indians.  In 1773, the Regulating Act was passed and created the Supreme Court of Judicature in Calcutta at Fort William, with appellate jurisdiction over the Calcutta, Madras and Bombay presidencies. The Charter Act of 1883 and other subsequent acts reorganised the judicial system and established a judicial hierarchy with defined appellate jurisdiction. High Courts were set up in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras by the Indian High Courts Act of 1861 and they were given appellate civil and criminal jurisdiction. In India, the people of Britain codified the laws with the reference of English common law. Criminal law and its procedures were put into formalities under the Indian Penal Code 1860 as well as the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) 1861. It was in the Code of Criminal Procedure that organised appeals of the criminal cases were provided with a structure.

In the period of Post-independence India, the Constitution of India was adopted in 1950 and a common codified legal system came into stream in one stroke with the Supreme Court at its apex. It’s provided under Article 136 of the constitution of India that the Apex Court can hear appeals contained in any judgment, decree or order passed by any court within the territory of India. The CrPC 1973, built upon and improved the procedural laws that governed criminal trials and appeals. Appeals in criminal cases are covered under sections 374 to 394 of CrPC. It mentions the provision for appeal against conviction and acquittal. It also defines the powers of the appellate court and the rights of the appellant. The position of law regarding re-recognition of the evidence at the appellate level was explained in cases such as K. Chinnaswamy Reddy v. State of Andhra Pradesh, AIR 1962 SC 1788 and Narendra Singh v. State of MP (2004 10 SCC 699). Changes were brought into the CrPC to clarify the procedures, shorten the time, deal with the new developments and enhance the appellate system. Technological advancements such as e-filing systems together with virtual hearings enhance the appellate process.

PRINCIPLES OF APPEAL:

The fundamental principles of appeal under CrPC are as follows:

  1. An appeal is a creature of statute

The right to appeal is recognized and described in the legislative instruments including, but not limited to, the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) in India. This, in turn, means that the right of appeal is accrued not enshrined in the Constitution as a constitutional right but a right given and regulated by certain laws or statutes. It is only by such statutory provisions that there is a right to appeal.

  1. No inherent right to file an appeal

It means that an individual does not have the right to appeal a legal decision as an inherent right. This is because, where the law or statute does not allow for an appeal in a given case then the appellants have no legal grounds that will allow them to appeal to the higher court. All the judgements are not appealable, there may be some which are final and are not capable of being appealed.

  1. No appeal only against conviction

Appeal as a right is in no way limited to the situations where a person has been convicted and hence is a criminal. Applications can also be made on procedural irregularities where there was a trial conducted, inter alia unreasonable denial of right to a fair trial, admission or exclusion of evidence as well as improper or wrongful application of the principles of law. Acquittals and sentencing as well also can include appeals.

  1. No appeal in petty cases

To avoid overloading higher instances, and to make sure that less essential problems are not brought to court, statutory provisions restrict the right to appeal in minor cases. Petty cases are usually those crimes that are less severe with corresponding meagre punishments. These cases include minor fines or short-term imprisonment.

  1. Generally, there is no appeal on conviction on a plea of guilt

If an accused person pleads guilty to a charge, this is made in total surrender, and he or she cannot appeal the conviction. The rationale behind this principle is based on the fact that any appeal serves to reconsider the findings and processes of the trial. However, a plea of guilt is the outright acknowledging responsibility of the alleged offender for the crime they are accused of and not a conviction of the court after a trial.

PROVISIONS FOR APPEAL UNDER CRIMINAL LAW:

In India, the Regulation of appeals in criminal cases is provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973. Under the CrPC the sections that deal with appeals from convictions and acquittals are:

Appeals from Convictions

  • Section 374 – Appeals from Convictions

According to this section, a trial on the offence is done before a High Court sitting in its extraordinary original criminal jurisdiction and the accused is convicted; then the accused has a right to appeal to the Supreme Court. Likewise, a person who has been charged by a Session Judge, an Additional Session Judge or any Court which has sentenced the appellant to imprisonment for a term exceeding seven years, has the right to appeal to the High Court. In cases tried by a Magistrate of the first or second class and culminate into a conviction, the convicted person can appeal to the Court of Session except if the penalty involves imprisonment of three months or less or a fine exceeding one hundred rupees.

  • Section 375 – No appeal in certain cases when the accused pleads guilty

No appeal shall lie where a person has been convicted of the offence on a plea of guilty; the legally sufficient plea of guilty apart from the extent or legality of the sentence given by the court.

  • Section 376 – No appeal in petty cases

No appeal shall be allowed where a court has only fined, and the amount does not exceed two hundred rupees or has sentenced one to imprisonment not exceeding six months, and the trial was conducted by a Magistrate of the first class.

Appeals from Acquittals

  • Section 378 – Appeal in case of Acquittal

According to this section, if the Magistrate enters an acquittal in any case which has been forwarded to the Court of Session along with the police report under section 173, the District Magistrate may order the Public Prosecutor to file an appeal to the Court of Session. Secondly, the State Government has the power to open a prosecution to require the Public Prosecutor to appeal to the High Court against an order of acquittal made originally or in appeal by a court other than that of the High Court. If an order of acquittal is passed in a case related to a complaint, then the complainant has the right to appeal but that too under special leave to appeal in the High Court. Failing to lodge this appeal within six months from the date of the acquittal order, the same will be deemed as having been lodged.

General Provisions for Appeals

  • Section 382 – Petition of Appeal

Every appeal shall be made in the form of a written petition filed by the appellant or the appellant’s legal practitioner, and every such petition shall be assumable by a copy of the judgement or order that is challenged.

  • Section 383 – Procedure when Appellant in Jail

Where the appellant is in prison, he shall file the petition of appeal and the copy of the judgement or order that has been appealed against with the officer commanding the prison and the latter shall transmit the same to the proper appellate court.

  • Section 384 – Summary Dismissal of Appeal

An appeal summary may be dismissed by the appellate court upon a finding that there is no sufficient reason to intervene. However, the provisions of Section 382 any appeal that may be presented shall not be struck out unless the appellant or the pleader for the appellant has been called upon to show cause why it should not be struck out.

  • Section 386 – Powers of the Appellate Court

After hearing an appeal in its jurisdiction, the appellate court may reverse the judgement or order, confirm the judgement, vary the judgement or order, order a new trial or discharge a convict. It is capable of re-designing the due appreciation of the evidence and arriving at its conclusions.

  • Section 389 – Suspension of Sentence Pending the Appeal; Release of Appellant on Bail

The appellate court may stay the operation of the sentence or the order which has been appealed against and may discharge the appellant on bail or their bond.

LANDMARK CASES AND JUDGEMENT:

Case 1 – K.M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra (1961)

In this case, K. M. Nanavati a naval officer came to know about his wife’s affair with Prem Ahuja. It is stated that on April 27, 1959, Nanavati went to the apartment of the deceased, Prem, armed with a revolver. The Nanavati accused Prem during an altercation and then shot him and he died from the injuries. There was the matter of trial where Nanavati was first tried in the Bombay High Court and the jury acquitted him much to the lobby’s chagrin probably because his action was committed under provocation. The conviction was overturned by the State for churning incomplete evidence that the jury used in arriving at the acquittal.

Issues Raised

  • Whether the act was predetermined murder or a crime of passion in sudden provocation
  • The applicability of the jury’s verdict and the role of the judge.

Judgement

The jury acquitted Nanavati and the Supreme Court of India also set aside the above said verdict and convicted Nanavati for culpable homicide. The court said that in this case, although the act was committed in the heat of passion and after provocation, such a case cannot be considered an excusable act, allowable by law due to sudden provocation. The defence was successful in reducing the charge to a murder that was committed under provocation, but Nanavati was still sentenced to life imprisonment, although the judge made it clear that provocation rendered the crime less heinous but did not excuse it.

Case 2 – Gian Kaur v. State of Punjab (1996)

Gian Kaur and her husband are charged with abetting the suicide of their daughter-in-law who was a victim of cruelty and harassment. The trial court convicted them under Section 306 of the IPC because they compelled her to take the fatal decision. In this case, the Department of Defence stirred up the allegations claiming that Section 306 was an unconstitutional regime of the underlined right of the law of life and personal liberty.

Issues Raised

  • Whether section 306 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 based on the abetment of suicide can be held to contravene the rights to life under Article 21 of the Indian constitution.

Judgement

The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India upheld the conviction and the legal provisions of section 306 IPC stating that the constitutional provision right to life as envisaged under article 21 of the Constitution of India does not include the right to die. As the Court noted the prohibition envisaged by Section 306 of abetting suicide is a step that is taken to prevent suicide and preserve life. This argument proves the significance of the statute as a way of handling and penalizing actions that lead to suicide.

Case 3 – State of Maharashtra v. Madhukar Narayan Mardikar (1991)

Madhukar Narayan Mardikar, a law enforcement officer faced allegations of trying to assault a woman. Yet the initial court ruled in his favor stating that the lack of witnesses and doubts, about the credibility of the victim’s testimony made it hard to prove guilt. The prosecution later appealed this verdict arguing that a victim’s account supported by testimonies should be adequate grounds, for legal intervention. 

Issues Raised

  • Whether the trial court’s acquittal was justified in the face of compelling evidence and the victim’s testimony.

Judgement

The Supreme Court reversed the not verdict stating that the victim’s character should not be used to discredit her testimony. Mardikar was found guilty by the Court highlighting that being an accused does not exempt someone, from facing consequences.

CONCLUSION:

The appeal is an important safeguard within the system of criminal justice in India and its objective was not only to serve justice but also it must seem to be done. It serves as an essential function of a review authority and avoids miscarriage obviously by ouster, error in procedure or acting per-in party on the part of the lower judiciary. It is essential in maintaining the rule of law and ensuring that all citizens are treated equally, as well as principles such as fairness, accountability and transparency within the judiciary.

ENDNOTES:

  • Books/ Commentaries / Journals
  • Dalton, Harlon Leigh. “Taking the Right to Appeal (More or Less) Seriously.” The Yale Law Journal, vol. 95, no. 1, Nov. 1985, p. 62
  • Orfield, Lester B. “The Right of Appeal in Criminal Cases.” Michigan Law Review, vol. 34, no. 7, 1936.
  • Marshall, Peter D. “A Comparative Analysis of the Right to Appeal.” Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law, vol. 22, no. 1, 2011.