Vijai Bahadur Singh vs State

R.N. Ray, J.—This appeal has been preferred against the judgment and order passed by Sri Hemraj Ram, learned IIIrd Addl. Sessions Judge, at Deoria, in Sessions Trial No. 153 of 1982 u/s 302/307, I.P.C. which arose out of Crime No. 30 of Police Station Lar district Deoria. The accused was found guilty of the offence u/s 302, I.P.C. of murdering his mother Smt. Marjadi Devi and injured his sister Km. Sunaina Devi in such a way that she could have died out of these injuries and the accused was found guilty of the offence u/s 307, I.P.C. for attempt of murder of his sister Km. Sunaina Devi and the learned Court below was pleased to sentence him to suffer for life for murder of his mother Marjadi Devi and seven years R.I. for the offence u/s 307, I.P.C. and was further pleased to order that both the sentences were to run concurrently.

The prosecution case is that on 14.3.82 at about 8.00 a.m., the accused assaulted his mother by a spade while she was cooking food in the corner of the Verandah which was being used as kitchen. As a result of which, said Smt. Marjadi Devi died on the spot. His sister Km. Sunaina (P.W. 2) tried to save her mother and she also sustained several injuries on her person and she fell down unconscious. On hearing the alarm raised by Smt. Marjadi Devi and Km. Sunaina, the informant Raj Bahadur Singh (P.W. 1) alongwith other witnesses who were present at the shop at that time rushed to the house of Smt. Marjadi Devi and found the accused holding spade which was heavily blood-stained. Then the accused tried to escape by running, but was chased and caught red-handed and the accused admitted before Raj Bahadur (P.W. 1), Mohiuddin Siddiqui (P.W. 3) and Ram Adhar Singh (P.W. 4) that as his mother was not agreeable to partition the agricultural land so he had finished her. When the accused-Appellant was caught in the aforesaid manner, he was found holding a spade which was heavily blood stained.

After that, the informant alongwith those witnesses went inside the house and found the mother of the accused lying dead near the oven and Km. Sunaina (P.W. 2), the sister of the Appellant, was found also in unconscious stage in a very seriously injured condition. Then the informant alongwith the others took that injured sister to the hospital and thereafter the informant Raj Bahadur Singh made a written report and submitted the same to the police station Lar and formal F.I.R. was drawn thereof. The investigation was taken up by S.I. Ram Mohan Ram who was then posted at police station Lar. He took the copy of that written information etc. and then proceeded for the place of occurrence. Before that, he passed instructions for sending the accused-Appellant Vijai Bahadur Singh to concerned Magistrate alongwith a prayer for police remand. He visited the place of occurrence and found the dead body of Smt. Marjadi Devi near the south-western part of the house which was being used as kitchen. S.I. Dudhnath also accompanied him, who made the inquest report and prepared the panchayatnama. The Investigating Officer seized blood-stained earth and plain-earth from that place, sealed them in separate packets in presence of the witnesses. He also seized other articles meant for cooking from the place of occurrence. I.O. took signatures of the witnesses in seizure list. He prepared site plan. The dead body in proper condition was sent alongwith forwarding note through constables for post-mortem examination. Thereafter he examined prosecution witnesses and recorded their statements u/s 161, Code of Criminal Procedure. He went to hospital Deoria on 14.3.82 but since the witness Km. Sunaina was still unconscious, her statements could not be recorded. He recorded her statement after 20 days when she regained full senses on recovery in hospital at Varanasi. The I.O. got chemical-examination report and also post-mortem report and after completion of all other formalities, he submitted charge-sheet against the accused. Be it noted that he also seized that blood-stained spade under proper seizer list and sealed it in proper condition and sent the same through the police constables for chemical examination and report.

After the commitment of the case, it was transferred to IIIrd Addl. Sessions Judge for trial. The learned trial Court considered the materials before it and framed charges u/s 302/307, I.P.C. which were read over and explained to the accused who pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried.

Raj Bahadur Singh (P.W. 1) was the informant and happened to be the real brother of the accused-Appellant Km. Sunaina Devi (P.W. 2) happened to be the sister of the Appellant and was seriously injured by the accused Appellant when she wanted to save her mother at the time of assault on her mother by the accused-Appellant. Mohiuddin Siddiqui (P.W. 3) police constable made entries in G.D. in connection with the case. Ram Adhar Singh (P.W. 4) is a police constable. On the relevant time, he alongwith constable Dayanand Pandey went to the shop of Raj Bahadur Singh (P.W. 1) when they heard alarm coming from the house of P.W. 1, which was hardly 15-20 paces away from the shop and they all rushed to that house and found that the accused was coming with blood stained spade in his hand. P.W. 4 and P.W. 5 chased the accused and P.W. 5 caught the accused alongwith that blood stained spade. Thereafter, they all went inside the house of P.W. 1 and found the mother of P.W. 1 lying dead near the oven in a pool of blood and they also found Km. Sunaina (P.W. 2) in unconscious stage who was also heavily injured. Ram Mohan Ram (P.W. 6) happened to be the I.O. P.W. 7, C.B. Singh was the doctor who examined Km. Sunaina (P.W. 2) and also proved the injury report of Km. Sunaina. P.W. 8, doctor V.K. Agarwal, held post-mortem examination on the dead-body of deceased Smt. Marjadi Devi. Constable No. 182 Chhedi Prasad and constable No. 466 Ram Adhar Singh took that dead-body to mortuary and identified the dead-body to the doctor who held post-mortem examination. P.W. 8 proved post-mortem report and deposed that injuries of the deceased Smt. Marjadi Devi were ante-mortem injuries and she died due to shock and haemorrhage for those ante-mortem injuries.

Doctor who examined Km. Sunaina deposed that he found the injury on her person P.W. 2 which could be caused by a spade. P.W. 3 and P.W. 4 are both dis-interested witnesses who corroborated P.W. 1 on material points and were successful in apprehending the accused while he was trying to run away. It has revealed in the evidence that the shop of P.W. 1 was situated at a distance of 15-20 paces from the house of the accused-Appellant where the deceased Smt. Marjadi was murdered by the accused-Appellant and Appellant seriously injured his sister Km. Sunaina (P.W. 2) who could have died out of these injuries but survived for timely proper treatments. The injuries were serious and doctor has opined that the injuries on the person of Km. Sunaina would have done by a spade. It has been pointed out by the learned Counsel for the Appellant that some injuries were lacerated and could only be done by blunt weapon. Doctor had opined that by the blunt side of the spade such injuries could be caused and on these lacerated and incised wounds found on the body of P.W. 2, Km. Sunaina, could be done by blow of spade. The seized spade recovered from the possession of the Appellant was blood stained as per chemical examination report.

Learned Counsel for the Appellant submitted that the accused Appellant was staying at Bombay and he used to send money for maintenance of his mother. P.W. 1 Raj Bahadur falsely implicated the accused Appellant to grab his property and caused the death of his mother through some unknown person and the accused have been implicated falsely. This argument does not inspire confidence. Though extra Judicial confession is a very week piece of evidence but the accused-Appellant immediately after the occurrence was apprehended when he was trying to run away and then gave out before P.W. 1, P.W. 4 and P.W. 5 that as his mother was not agreeable for partition of agricultural lands, so he had finished her. He was immediately apprehended while running away with bloodstained spade in his hand. P.W. 1, P.W. 4 and P.W. 5 went inside the house of P.W. 1 immediately on hearing the alarms raised by P.W. 2. Since they were at that time at the shop of P.W. 1 which was at a distance of 15-20 paces from the residence of P.W. 1 while the incident took place, it was quite possible for them to reach that house in no time.

The evidence of P.W. 2 who happened to be the injured witness could not be brushed aside. Moreover, the motive of P.W. 2 to falsely implicate her brother as suggested is very difficult to believe. P.W. 2 would hardly spare the real culprit and falsely implicate her own brother with the charge of murdering their mother, P.W. 1, P.W. 2, P.W. 4 and P.W. 5 and all the prosecution witnesses remain all through unshaken during cross-examination. The plea of temporary insanity of the Appellant was rejected by the learned Court below in view of the doctor''s opinion who examined the accused Appellant and moreover, the learned Court below interrogated the accused Appellant before trial and found him mentally alert and sound. The learned court below also found the accused in proper mental condition during the entire course of trial. Replies made by the accused-Appellant while he was being examined u/s 313, Code of Criminal Procedure also point out that the accused was mentally alert and sound and he was not suffering from any mental derangement. The plea of temporary mental insanity is not proved by the accused. In view of the other materials it appeared that the accused-Appellant was mentally alert and sound. The accused-Appellant neither pleaded temporary mental insanity while he was examined u/s 313, Code of Criminal Procedure nor any defence witness was examined to prove temporary insanity of the accused Appellant. So we reject the plea of temporary insanity of the accused Appellant at the time of the commission of the offence.

Sri Raghuraj Kishore, learned advocate was appointed by this Court on State expenses to defend the accused as accused was in jail and could not engage any lawyer. His fees is assessed Rs. 1,500 (Rupees one thousand five hundred only) which be paid by the State of U.P.

In the result the appeal stands dismissed. Exhibits be disposed of as per rules.

N.L. Ganguly, J. - I agree.