A quarrel over a single pinch of chewing tobacco in Bagaha, in Bihar's West Champaran district, had spiralled into a murder case three years ago. Now the case has taken a decisive turn, the Bagaha civil court has acquitted the accused, Kalimuddin Gaddi, citing a lack of solid evidence. The court of District and Additional Sessions Judge IV Manvendra Mishra completed the hearing and granted the accused the benefit of the doubt before acquitting him.
A fight that began over a pinch of tobacco
According to police, the case is linked to a killing that took place around three years ago in Khalwa Patti village, under the Dhanha police station area of the district. As per the prosecution, Nazir Gaddi filed a complaint at Dhanha police station on 4 September 2023, accusing others of assaulting his 35 year old son, Gulab Gaddi. The complaint stated that the dispute between the two sides began over something as small as a single pinch of khaini, tobacco, but it quickly escalated.
Alleged screwdriver attack on the neck, but postmortem found no confirmation
Per the FIR, once the argument turned into a scuffle, Kalimuddin allegedly struck Gulab Gaddi's neck with a screwdriver. That single alleged blow is what pushed the case into murder charges, and police named Kalimuddin as the accused. However, the postmortem examination conducted during the investigation did not confirm the claim of a screwdriver attack on the neck, a gap that weakened the prosecution's case from the outset.
Several witnesses retracted their statements during the trial
Once the trial got underway, things did not go smoothly for the prosecution. During the hearing, several witnesses went back on the statements they had originally given, while a few were declared hostile altogether. As a result, the prosecution could not produce sufficient, solid evidence before the court to establish the murder charge against the accused. Citing this very shortage of evidence, the court gave Kalimuddin Gaddi the benefit of the doubt and acquitted him.
Freedom after nearly three years behind bars
Kalimuddin Gaddi spent close to three years in jail in connection with the murder case before the court's verdict finally set him free. The court made clear that the prosecution had failed to gather evidence strong enough to prove the allegations, and that shortfall is what tipped the verdict in the accused's favour. In the aftermath of the ruling, local residents have begun questioning the way police and the investigating agency handled the case, arguing that a stronger investigation from the start might have produced a different outcome.
