Proof of motive not necessary to sustain murder charge: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Thursday observed that proof of motive is not necessary to sustain a murder charge [Mohd Nawab v State NCT of Delhi]. 

A Division Bench of Justices Subramonium Prasad and Vimal Kumar Yadav said that motive is not a necessary ingredient of an offence since most of the grievous crimes are committed out of very flimsy and frivolous considerations. 

“The proof of motive is not necessary to sustain a conviction on a murder charge when there is clear evidence that the person had been done to death by the accused. In other words, when the facts establishing the charge are clear it is immaterial that the motive has not been proved. The reason is that the motive of an act may be known to the perpetrator and to none other and the investigator may not have been able to collect any information in regard thereto,” the Court held. 

It added that the evidence of motive, which is frequently given in such cases, is of subsidiary importance. 

"The mere fact that the accused had a motive to cause the death of the deceased is not a fact which will dispense with the proof of points that the accused had got a suitable immediate occasion for committing the crime and of actually committing it,” the Court stressed. 

The Bench made these observations while upholding the conviction and life sentence of one Mohd Nawab for the murder of a rickshaw puller named Giani in November 1998.

One of the grounds for challenging the conviction before the High Court was that the prosecution failed to show any motive on Nawab’s part. 

However, the Court rejected the challenge and held that the Nawab’s guilt was proved beyond a reasonable doubt. 

“Consequently, the appeal fails and is hereby dismissed,” it ordered. 

Advocates SK Sharma, Tejas Singh, Rahul Sharma, Yogender and Saurabh Dagar appeared for Mohd Nawab. 

State was represented by Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Aashneet Singh. 

[Read Judgment]