The Supreme Court has said that if an appellate court convicts an accused in a criminal case for the first time, it must hear the person on the issue of punishment and cannot send the matter to a lower court only for sentencing.
A bench of Justices K V Viswanathan and Vijay Bishnoi made the observation while sending a rape case back to the Calcutta High Court for fresh consideration.
In the case, the High Court had convicted the accused and asked him to surrender before the trial court for sentencing. The Supreme Court said the appellate court itself should hear the accused on the sentence after finding him guilty.
