The case dates back to 1974, when the value of US$1 was about Rs8 in Indian currency. Now, the exchange rate is around Rs90 per US dollar.A robbery involving a wristwatch worth Rs60, Rs4 and a handkerchief was allegedly committed within the jurisdiction of Bund Garden police station on March 14, 1974. An FIR was registered the following day under Section 394, read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, against Kale and two others.Two of the accused pleaded guilty and were convicted. They were sentenced to three months’ imprisonment in April 1975. The third accused, Rajaram, in his 20s then, did not plead guilty. He absconded after charges were framed against him on April 3, 1975.The trial against Rajaram did not progress since then. Court records showed that non-bailable warrants and proclamation proceedings were issued against him from time to time, but he could not be traced. He is still tracelss.Assistant public prosecutor Ashwini Kale told TOI that dormant cases were taken up for review after the present judge took charge, leading to the revival of this file. She said the case originally had eight witnesses and all the three accused were arrested at the time of the incident. Two of them pleaded guilty and were sentenced to three months’ imprisonment.Kale said the third accused, Rajaram, pleaded not guilty, but absconded. She said he never appeared for hearings despite non-bailable warrants and proclamation orders. Notices and warrants were issued to the complainant and witnesses after the case was reopened, but none appeared before the court. Rajaram was finally acquitted on Boxing Day last year because of lack of evidence despite remaining absconding for over 50 years, she said.Boxing Day, also known as Offering Day, is celebrated on December 26. Some believe the name derived from the practice of opening donation boxes placed in churches to aid the poor, a day after Christmas. Another group attributes it to boxes of gifts given to employees post-Xmas.The court held that the prosecution failed to prove the offence against the accused and acquitted him under Section 248(1) of the CrPC. It recorded that the prosecution could not secure the presence of any witness and that no oral or documentary evidence came on record against the accused. In its final order of Dec 26, 2025, the court cancelled all warrants and bonds issued against the accused and directed that seized property, if any, be disposed of as per law.
