Puniya also testified that Chand was neither present at

the spot nor he had caused any injuries to her or Kalicharan. The court, however, convicted Chand, saying that even though Puniya was declared as a "hostile witness" during the trial, her statement could not be wholly discarded. "The sole eye witness in this case is Puniya who is the wife of the accused and as expected of her, she being the wife of the accused has not supported the case of the prosecution. "She was declared hostile. But it is a settled law that testimony of a hostile witness cannot be discarded in toto," the court said. "No doubt the motive assumes importance but it cannot be said that in the absence of the motive to commit a crime no conviction can be made. But if there are other overwhelming circumstances pointing towards the guilt of the accused, the motive does not assume so much importance, and pales into insignificance," it said, while rejecting contentions of the defence counsel that the police had failed to prove any motive.