Mr. President, Sir, I feel that I must support the amendment moved by my honourable Friend, Bakhshi Tek Chand. He wants two things to be done. He says in the first place that if the High Court certifies that it is a fit case to be hears by the Supreme Court, the case must be sent there. I agree entirely. When the High Court itself passes an order and is of opinion that that order may be changed and there is a Supreme Court which can vary that order, that should go up to the Supreme Court. There cannot be two opinions on this. The next thing is if the High Court upsets and order, viz., if acquittal has been passed by a Sessions Court and the High Court on appeal from Government has passed an order of death sentence or rather upsets the previous order of the Sessions Judge and finds the accused guilty, in that case an appeal should be allowed to go to the Supreme Court. I would go a step further. I say that in any case where there has been an order of acquittal by Lower Court and that order has been upset by the High Court, then an appeal can lie to the Supreme Court. My reason is that you have got two decisions before you, one of a Sessions Judge who is trying a case with the help of a Jury. The Jury is of opinion that it is a fit case for acquittal and if the Judge agrees with the Jury the matter ends. There can be no appeal against acquittal. That is the general law but if there has to be an appeal it must be preferred by Government itself not by private individuals. It is only an Advocate General acting on behalf of Government who can do it. When that appeal goes up, surely one set of people-the Jury and the Judge have said on the one hand that this person is not guilty. The High Court says that that person is guilty. In my opinion when there are two opinions before you there must be a third and final opinion. Therefore, all cases, where an acquittal has been upset must be allowed to go to Supreme Court. Now there is a principle of law that once a person has been acquitted, he should not be tried for the same charge. In England you will find very rarely there is an appeal against acquittal. Therefore, I submit that I want in all murder cases where both points of law and fact are involved, appeals from the High Court should go to the Supreme Court. Murder cases are very important cases and these should finally be decided by the Supreme Court if there is an appeal.
