Mumbai actor acquitted in murder case

An aspiring actor from Punjab who allegedly killed a 25-year-old resident of Amritsar, Vikramjeet Singh, wrapped his body with a blanket and threw it near a residential building at Oshiwara in 2008, was acquitted by a sessions court on Friday.  

The body was found by a watchman of a building on May 7, 2008. The wallet found in the body had a PAN card which revealed the identity of the deceased.

The police claimed that accused Swatanter Pal Singh, 25, also a resident of Amritsar, had promised Vikramjeet a job in Canada for a sum of Rs5 lakh.

Vikramjeet arrived in Mumbai on May 7, 2008, and stayed at Swatanter’s house in Oshiwara. He allegedly demanded that Swatanter should facilitate his passage to Canada or return his money. In the ensuing scuffle, the prosecution argued, Swatanter slit Vikramjeet’s throat. 

The prosecution had examined 16 witnesses in the case to nail the accused. The watchman of the building in which Swatanter was living, Swatanter’s friend Paramveer Saini whose car Swatanter had used to carry the body, and Vikramjeet’s father, Mukhtar Singh Mucchal, deposed in the case.

However, the defence claimed that there were holes in the circumstantial evidence put forth by the prosecution. Besides, the motive as ascribed by the prosecution was not presented before the court by way of evidence. 

Accepting the defence contentions, additional sessions judge SD Agarwal acquitted Swatanter.