Thane Court Acquits Man Of Abducting Nephew As Key Witnesses Turn Hostile

A Thane court has acquitted a 36-year-old man accused of kidnapping the minor son of his wife's sister in 2023, as prime witnesses in the case, turned hostile.

Additional Sessions Judge V G Mohite, in the order passed on July 18, said the prosecution has failed to bring on record incriminating evidence to prove the incident of kidnapping of child by the accused for ransom.

A copy of the order was made available on Wednesday.

The accused, who has been in judicial custody since October 28, 2023, was ordered to be released immediately subject to any other legal proceedings pending against him.

The prosecution alleged that on October 25, 2023, the accused went to the house of his wife's sister in Kalwa area of Maharashtra's Thane city and took away her one-and-a-half-year-old son under the pretext of giving him sweets.

He refused to return the child unless his estranged wife agreed to go with him. The police later alleged the accused demanded Rs 2,000 to release the child.

The accused faced charges under sections 363 (kidnapping), 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 365 (wrongful confinement) and 384 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code.

Defence counsel Sagar Kolhe contested the charges against the accused.

During the trial, the child's mother, who is the complainant, turned hostile. She testified the accused had returned the child safely and that she lodged the complaint in anger over a domestic dispute.

Judge Mohite said, "Informant is the mother of the minor child...the accused came to her house...and took away her son...After some time, the accused brought him back to the house. However, due to anger she has filed the complaint against the accused for kidnapping of her son." The court further noted that even during cross-examination by the public prosecutor, the complainant denied the child was held for ransom or that the accused demanded money.

The second key witness, who is the complainant's sister and the accused's wife, also did not support the prosecution. She denied her police statement that the accused demanded ransom, and insisted she had no complaint against him.

With both prime witnesses turning hostile, the prosecution opted not to examine the remaining witnesses.

The court acknowledged the background of a family dispute which appeared to have triggered the case.

According to the defence, the accused and his wife had been living separately due to a marital rift.

On the day of the incident, the accused had visited Kalwa to enquire about his wife's whereabouts. When he was refused information, he briefly took the child and then returned him unharmed.

The court accepted this version, especially in the absence of a credible evidence to the contrary.

"The prosecution has failed to bring on record incriminating evidence to prove the incident of kidnapping of child by accused for ransom. Witness has denied demand of money...prosecution has not adduced reliable direct as well as circumstantial evidence... accused is entitled to get acquittal," the court said. 

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