Archive · 11 Sep 2026
Bombay High Court Acquits Man in 2016 Vile Parle Murder
The Bombay High Court reviewed the case of Debashish Dhara, who had been sentenced to death.
He was accused of raping and killing a physiotherapist in Mumbai in 2016.
The trial court had found him guilty in 2019.
The high court said the evidence did not clearly prove that Dhara committed the crime.
Police had looked at other people but did not question some of them properly.
The court also said the CCTV footage did not clearly show criminal conduct by Dhara.
Because there was reasonable doubt, the judges cancelled his conviction and death sentence.
Dhara was ordered to leave Yerawada Jail immediately.
The Bombay High Court acquitted Debashish Dhara in the 2016 rape and murder case of a 24-year-old physiotherapist.
The court ruled that the prosecution failed to establish a complete chain of evidence linking Dhara to the crime.
Dhara had been sentenced to death by a Dindoshi Sessions Court in 2019 for murder, rape, unnatural sexual offences and house trespass.
The high court identified shortcomings involving the investigation, CCTV evidence and the failure to question other potential suspects.
The bench ordered Dhara’s immediate release, stressing that suspicion cannot replace proof in a criminal case.
- Who
- The Bombay High Court, Debashish Dhara and the State prosecution were involved in the case.
- What
- The high court acquitted Dhara and set aside his conviction and death sentence in a 2016 rape-and-murder case.
- When
- The acquittal was ordered on September 7, 2026; the detailed judgment was made available on September 10.
- Where
- The case concerned a physiotherapist’s residence in Vile Parle East, Mumbai, and Dhara was held at Yerawada Jail.
- Why
- The court found that the prosecution’s evidence was weak, disconnected and insufficient to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Prosecution’s Case
High Court’s Finding
Evidence linking Dhara to the crime
Prosecution’s Case
The prosecution relied on circumstances including Dhara’s presence in the area and CCTV footage to support the conviction and death sentence.
High Court’s Finding
The court found the circumstances weak or doubtful and said they did not form a complete chain proving Dhara’s guilt.
CCTV footage
Prosecution’s Case
The prosecution treated footage showing Dhara in the area as relevant to its case.
High Court’s Finding
The court said other people visible in the footage were not questioned, while another clip did not establish whose house was shown or prove criminal intent.
Standard for conviction
Prosecution’s Case
The trial court described the case as one of the rarest of rare cases involving exceptional depravity.
High Court’s Finding
The high court held that suspicion or probability of guilt cannot replace proof and that reasonable possibilities consistent with innocence require acquittal.
- Accused
- Debashish Dhara, a goldsmith from West Bengal
- Victim
- A 24-year-old physiotherapist
- Incident date
- December 6, 2016
- Trial conviction
- Dindoshi Sessions Court convicted Dhara in October 2019
- Original sentence
- Death for murder, rape, unnatural sexual offences and house trespass
- High court finding
- The prosecution failed to establish a complete chain of evidence
- Outcome
- Conviction and death sentence set aside; immediate release ordered