1. HAMOODUR RABMAN, C. J.-The petitioner has been convicted under section 377, P. P. C. For committing sodomy on a boy of 14 years and sentenced to 2 years' rigorous imprisonment by a Division Bench of the High Court of Sind & Baluchistan after setting aside his acquittal in respect of the said charge by the A. C. M. No. X of Karachi.
2. Learned counsel appearing in support of the petition contends that the High Court should not have set aside the acquittal, as the acquittal by the Magistrate was based on cogent reasons.
3. The acquittal appeal before the High Court had been filed by the State and as in such an appeal the facts were open to the High Court and it could form its own opinion upon the evidence, although it naturally had to give due weight and consideration to the views of the trial' Court which had the opportunity to see the witnesses. In the present case, the Nigh Court has done that and dealt with each of the reasons given by the Magistrate for the acquittal.
4. The evidence in this case was straight forward. The petitioner had been arrested almost immediately after he committed the illegal act and taken to the police station. Examination of the swa bs taken from the anus of the boy and the urethra of the petitioner were both found to contain semen. This confirmed that the petitioner had committed the sexual act shortly before.
5. The victim concerned was not a habitual catamite and since he had no reason at all to falsely implicate the petitioner, this was a sufficient corroboration of his evidence and, therefore; the acquittal by the. Magistrate was not justified.
6. All the points raised in this case relate merely to the appreciation of evidence and this is not a function undertaken by this Court unless there is some serious disregard of the principles governing the appreciation of evidence. No such defect has been pointed out to us. We, therefore, see no reason for interference, This petition is, accordingly, dismissed.