IRAPPA SIDDAPPA MURGANNAVAR Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The judgment under challenge, passed by the High Court of Karnataka at Dharwad on 6th March 2017, affirms the conviction of the appellant - Irappa Siddappa Murgannavar - under Sections 302, 376, 364, 366A, and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, 'the Code'); and confirms the sentence of death for the offence under Section 302, rigorous imprisonment for life for the offence under Section 376, rigorous imprisonment for six years and a fine of Rs.10,000/- with default stipulation for the offences under Sections 364 and 366A each, and rigorous imprisonment for two years and a fine of Rs.2,000/- with default stipulation for the offence under Section 201 of the Code. The sentences under Sections 376, 364, 366A, and 201 of the Code are directed to run consecutively.

(2.) The case of the prosecution is that the appellant subjected the deceased R to rape, killed her by strangulation, and then disposed of her body, tied in a gunny bag, into the stream named Bennihalla. As there are no eye witnesses to the commission of the offences, in order to prove these postulations, the prosecution has relied on three-fold circumstances: (i) that the appellant took away R from a neighbour's house on 28th December 2010; (ii) that the appellant was last seen by certain witnesses carrying R and a gunny bag towards the Bennihalla stream; and (iii) that based on the disclosure statement of the appellant on 1st January 2011, the dead body of R was recovered in a gunny bag from Bennihalla.

(3.) R, a girl aged 5 years and 2 months, was living with her maternal grandfather Rangappa in village Khanapur, Taluka Nargund, District Gadag, Karnataka while her parents worked in Mangalore, Karanataka. Rangappa's neighbours Venkavva Patil (PW-5) and her nephew Ajit Patil (PW-6) have testified that on 28th December 2010 at about 6:30 pm, R had come to their house to watch TV. At about 6:30 pm the appellant had also come to their house. He was talking to R and took her with him on the pretext of buying her biscuits. Hanamappa (PW-4), who is the brother of Rangappa, testified that R did not return that night, and in spite of frantic efforts, she could not be traced. The next day, he enquired at Venkavva Patil's (PW-5) house about R's whereabouts, where he was informed that the appellant had taken R with him. Hanamappa (PW-4) lodged a missing person report re R at Nargund Police Station on 29th December 2010 (Exhibit P-6). This complaint states that on 28th December 2010, at 9 pm, he was informed by Mallanagowda Kagadal (PW-14) that R was missing, following which he went to his brother Rangappa's house and learnt from his brother's daughter, Yallavva Mangalore (PW-23), that R had gone to Venkavva Patil's (PW-5) house at 6:30 pm to watch TV, and that he, along with other people, tried locating R but were unsuccessful. The complaint does not mention the involvement of the appellant, a fact counted on by the counsel for the appellant that will be addressed subsequently. Similarly, Yallavva Mangalore (PW-23) has testified that R had gone to her neighbour's house at about 6:30 p.m. on 28th December 2010 to watch TV. As R did not return home, they had made enquiries with their neighbour Venkavva Patil (PW-5) who had confirmed R's visit to her house for watching TV and that she may have gone out. Yallavva Mangalore (PW-23) had looked for R and, on being unsuccessful, informed her father and uncles. R could not be located on the said date or on 29th December 2010.