SC Acquits Man Accused of Being Hired by In-Laws to Kill Woman After Property Dispute Win
Nearly nine years after a 32-year-old woman was shot dead outside her home in Haryana’s M.P. Majra village, the Supreme Court has acquitted the man convicted of killing her, stating that his guilt was never proven and that the supposed conspiracy by her in-laws to get her killed was built only on “bald allegations".
Deceased Promila’s brother had accused her mother-in-law, Daya Kaur, and brother-in-law Ved Prakash of plotting her murder in June 2016, after she won a long-running property dispute against them. He claimed they hired three men, Govind, Sanoj, and Amit, to shoot her dead in revenge.
But on November 14, 2025, a bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi noted that there was no eyewitness, no clear evidence linking the weapon to the crime, and no proof that the in-laws had anything to do with the killing.
“The prosecution failed to prove the guilt of the appellant beyond reasonable doubt,” court said, setting aside the trial court and high court verdicts that had sentenced Govind to life imprisonment.
Govind had been convicted by a Jhajjar sessions court in 2018 for murdering Promila and for possessing an illegal firearm under Section 25 of the Arms Act. The conviction was upheld by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in November 2023. The Supreme Court, however, found that both courts had erred in relying exclusively on the recovery of the weapon and a forensic report to establish guilt.
According to the prosecution, on the morning of June 12, 2016, Promila was shot dead by three men who arrived in an Alto car. The FIR, lodged by her brother, initially blamed her in-laws for the conspiracy. Pradeep alleged that his sister’s mother-in-law and brother-in-law were angered after losing the property dispute to Promila and sought revenge by hiring assailants.
Five days later, in a supplementary statement, Pradeep named three persons, namely Sanoj @ Sonu, Amit, and Govind, as the shooters. The police arrested Govind and Amit on June 18, 2016, and Sanoj on July 4. A motorcycle was seized from Amit, while police claimed to have recovered a country-made pistol and two live cartridges from Govind’s home. Sanoj’s arrest led to the recovery of the car and another pistol.
The trial court acquitted Sanoj and Amit but convicted Govind, holding that the recovery of the pistol and the FSL report matching bullets to it were sufficient evidence. The high court later affirmed this finding.
However, before the Supreme Court, Govind’s counsel argued that the conviction was baseless, as both key eyewitnesses including the complainant Pradeep (PW-1), had turned hostile, denying the prosecution story and even claiming the police obtained his signatures on blank papers. The recovery, counsel pointed out, was made from an unlocked iron box accessible to all family members, with no independent witnesses present.
The Supreme Court found substance in these arguments, noting that the prosecution failed to link the recovered weapon to the murder. It observed that the weapon was stored for 19 days in the police station’s malkhana before being sent to the forensic lab, and there was no proof of continuity in the chain of custody. “Mere recovery of a weapon, without establishing its use in the crime, cannot form the sole basis of conviction,” the bench said.
Court also found that the alleged motive, centered on the property dispute involving Promila’s in-laws, had no connection to Govind, who was merely described as a friend of one of the acquitted accused. “Speculative motive and recovery from a place accessible to others are insufficient to sustain a conviction,” the bench held.
Setting aside both the trial court and the high court judgments, the Supreme Court acquitted Govind of all charges, directing his immediate release unless required in another case.
Case Title: Govind Vs State of Haryana
Judgment Date: November 14, 2025
Bench: Justices J K Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi