Maha court acquits mother-son duo accused of killing relative

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A court in Maharashtra's Thane district has acquitted a 54-year-old woman and her son who were accused of killing their relative nine years ago.

Additional sessions judge at Kalyan Rajeev Pande held that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges against the woman and her 34-year-old son.

The copy of the order passed on January 2 was made available on Friday.

According to the prosecution, the mother-son duo, who are residents of Khadavali locality in Kalyan, were allegedly embroiled in a long-standing property dispute with the victim, who was the woman's brother-in-law.

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On June 25, 2014, the duo allegedly attacked the victim with an iron rod and killed him. They later informed the relatives that the victim was a heavy drinker and had died as a result of a fall, the prosecution claimed.

The alleged accused were charged under section 302 (murder) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code.

The court observed that the prosecution's case depended on suspicion, and the suspicion, however strong, cannot take the place of evidence.

The prosecution had failed to bring sufficient and cogent evidence against the accused to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt, therefore, the accused are entitled to be acquitted, it said.

Earlier in the day, a 31-year-old man from Maharashtra's Thane district lost nearly Rs 14 lakh to an online scam, an official said on Friday.

A woman, who identified herself as Geeta, got in touch with the complainant through the Telegram app last week and persuaded him to invest in cryptos promising high returns, said the official.

The man got handsome returns initially and ended up investing Rs 13.86 lakh but then the money stopped coming, said the official from Vishnu Nagar police station in Dombivali.

On his complaint, the police registered a case on Thursday, said the official, adding that no one has been arrested yet.

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