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🔍 An Appeal Cannot Leave the Appellant Worse Off” – Supreme Court Reinforces Boundaries on High Courts’ Suo Motu Revisional Powers"

 A bench comprising Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma was hearing an appeal against a Madras High Court judgment, wherein the High Court had suo motu exercised its revisional powers to convict and sentence the appellant under Section 306 IPC (abetment of suicide), despite his acquittal under that charge by the Trial Court. The Trial Court had instead convicted the appellant under Sections 354 and 448 IPC, sentencing him to three years of imprisonment. The appellant challenged this conviction before the High Court.

While deciding the appeal, the High Court registered a suo motu revision, asserting its inherent revisional powers, and went on to convict the appellant under Section 306 IPC, sentencing him to five years of rigorous imprisonment with fine.

The Supreme Court held that under Section 401 CrPC, the High Court does not have the authority to convert an acquittal into a conviction in exercise of its revisional jurisdiction. This principle also extends to bar the High Court from enhancing the sentence in an appeal filed only by the accused, especially when no appeal or revision has been filed by the State, complainant, or victim seeking enhancement.

The Court further clarified that even after giving the accused an opportunity of hearing, the High Court cannot, in an appeal filed solely by the accused, invoke suo motu revisional powers to enhance the sentence. Its powers are limited to either acquitting the accused, ordering a retrial, or reducing the sentence while maintaining conviction.

The Supreme Court referred to its judgment in Sachin v. State of Maharashtra and to Jyoti Plastic Works Pvt. Ltd. v. Union of India (2020 OnLine Bom 2276), reiterating that an appellant cannot be placed in a worse position merely by filing an appeal. Therefore, the High Court’s act of enhancing the sentence under suo motu revision was held impermissible.

Accordingly, the Supreme Court set aside the conviction and sentence under Section 306 IPC, while affirming the conviction and sentence under Sections 354 and 448 IPC as awarded by the Trial Court.

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