THANE: The Thane court acquitted three men accused in the 2013 Shilphata murder case, pointing to insufficient evidence and critical investigative lapses.
Those acquitted are Dilshad Ahmad alias Pappu Mustafa Khan, Wasim Jafar Husain Ansari, and Gayasuddin Mumtaj Khan, who were charged with murder (BNS 302) and criminal conspiracy (BNS 120-B) in connection with the killing of truck driver Saroj Yadav.
On December 5, 2013, Yadav, who drove for a private transport service, was discovered dead in bushes near Hanuman Hotel in Shilphata, off the Mumbra-Panvel Highway.
His body showed multiple stab wounds, and forensic examination determined that death resulted from asphyxiation due to choking on mud, compounded by fatal stab injuries. Investigators theorised that the murder was connected to a conspiracy involving a chemical-laden tanker the victim was assigned to drive.
Police registered a case at Shil-Daighar Police Station and made arrests. During the trial process, two accused fled and had their cases separated in 2019. The prosecution built their case on circumstantial evidence, including the recovery of the victim’s mobile phone and bloodstained clothing from one defendant.
The prosecution’s case ultimately failed due to several critical weaknesses: forensic reports yielded inconclusive results, key eyewitnesses who reportedly last saw Yadav with the accused could not be located, and the chain of circumstantial evidence was deemed incomplete by the court.
Additional Sessions Judge Amit M. Shete ruled that prosecutors failed to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt, noting no direct or corroborative evidence connected the accused to the crime.
All three were acquitted under Section 235(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code. The court cancelled their bail bonds and ordered disposal of case materials.
