Supreme Court Acquits Youth in Accidental Gunshot Death Case, Mere Hiding the body does Not Prove Guilt

The Supreme Court found that a youth should not be assumed guilty simply because he hid the body of a friend who accidentally shot himself while playing with a service rifle.

The Court held that concealing the body does not automatically indicate guilt in the death.

Based on this reasoning, the youth was acquitted of murder charges, though his conviction under Section 201 of the IPC for concealing evidence was upheld. (Vaibhav v The State of Maharashtra)