Actor Shiney Ahuja, who was recently sentenced to seven years' rigorous imprisonment for raping his maid, challenged his conviction in the Bombay High Court on Tuesday. He also appealed for bail. The bail application will be heard on April 27. The actor contended that there were several lapses in the conduct of the DNA analysis. The fast-track court gave the judgment on the premise that the DNA report was positive. The verdict was also based on circumstantial evidence.
“The judge [of the fast-track court] has committed a serious error in holding the DNA report as having presumptive value and that the accused has failed to rebut this presumption,” said the appeal, which was admitted.
Elaborating on problems in the victim's statement, the appeal said: “The judge has refused to consider the evidence which proves the innocence of Shiney and has drawn unwarranted conclusions/inferences that are devoid of any legal basis.”
