Panchkula, May 17 -- A local court in Panchkula has acquitted Sameem alias Salim, a native of Bijnor district in Uttar Pradesh, in the 2022 murder case of a Bangladeshi woman whose body was found near Chandigarh Railway Station. The deceased, identified as Rozina Begum, was residing in Mauli Jagran, Chandigarh, with her husband and family. At the time of the incident, the accused was also living in Mauli Jagran. The government railway police (GRP) Chandigarh registered the case on January 15, 2022 under Sections 302 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code after finding the woman's body near Line Number 8 in the railway station yard. Police recovered a sharp-edged iron blade, blood-stained soil and blood-soaked cloth from the crime scene. The postmortem revealed 17 sharp weapon injuries on the victim's body. The complainant, Chhotu Khan, husband of the deceased, later alleged that the accused developed illicit relations with his wife and murdered her. The accused was arrested on February 1, 2022 and police claimed he made a disclosure statement confessing to the crime. The prosecution relied on circumstantial evidence, including CCTV footage, alleged motive, extra-judicial confession, "last seen" evidence and recovery of articles. However, the court observed that the entire prosecution case rested solely on circumstantial evidence and lacked any direct ocular account of the incident. The court noted that the FIR was initially registered against unknown persons and the accused was nominated more than 15 days later based on an improved statement made by the complainant. The court further held that the "last seen" theory collapsed after the e-rickshaw driver, projected as a key witness, turned hostile and denied seeing any male person accompanying the deceased. The CCTV footage also did not show the accused with the deceased; it only captured the victim boarding an e-rickshaw with another woman. Rejecting the prosecution's motive theory, the court observed that no independent evidence was produced to establish the alleged illicit relationship or blackmail allegations. The alleged extra-judicial confession before an ex-sarpanch was also found unreliable as the witness failed to support the prosecution on material aspects. The court also pointed out several procedural and forensic deficiencies in the investigation. It observed that no fingerprints were lifted from the alleged weapon, no DNA profiling was conducted, and the blood stains found on the recovered weapon were not scientifically linked to the deceased. The identification of the accused was not conducted through a judicial test identification parade (TIP) and appeared police-arranged, thereby reducing its evidentiary value. The court further noted contradictions in witness statements regarding the recovery proceedings and observed that no independent witnesses were joined during the recoveries despite their availability. Mobile location evidence was also found inconclusive. Holding that the prosecution failed to establish a complete chain of circumstances proving guilt beyond reasonable doubt, the court acquitted the accused of all charges....