RAVASAHEB Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The only point which arises for consideration is whether on the basis of testimony of a solitary witness, eight men can be allowed to suffer incarceration for life, as has been concurrently held by the courts below. In the aforesaid backdrop, we are duty bound to examine as to whether the testimony of this sole eyewitness Yankappa Panchagavi (PW-1) is worthy of credence; Is he trustworthy?; Has he deposed truthfully?; Is his testimony believable and free from embellishments, improvements or material discrepancies so as to render it shaky or doubtful?; and as to whether the prosecution has established its case beyond reasonable doubt, against all accused persons or not? All this is what we are called upon to examine.

(2.) It is not in dispute that one Satyappa was found to have been murdered in broad day light in village Kaltippi, Jamakhandi Taluka. It is also not in dispute that in relation to the said incident, the very same day, i.e., on 13/8/2004 at 04.00 p.m. a report was lodged with Terdal Police Station, District Bagalkot, Karnataka. It is also not in dispute that the I.O Shri Hanamappa Sangappa Keri (PW-32), who conducted the investigation reached the spot and after making preliminary inquiries and conducting investigation, recovered the dead body and sent it for postmortem which was conducted by Dr. Shabbir Patel, PW-27. The post-mortem report (Ex.P-25) duly proven by the said expert, does establish the deceased to have sustained 21 stab injuries inflicted on different vital parts of the body. The multiple injuries serious in nature, were caused by sharp-edged weapon(s). They being on all the vital parts of the body, resulted into the death of the deceased. Herein only, this Court notices, that in relation to the said crime, the trial court convicted all the eight accused persons, namely, Ramappa (accused No.1), Shanker (accused No.2), Krishnappa (accused No.3), Gulappa Gavappa Karigar (accused No.4), Beerappa (accused No.5), Ravasaheb Laxman Patil (accused No.6), Yankappa Shivappa Naik (accused No.7) and Parappa @ Gulappa (accused No.8), for having committed murder of the deceased with the use of different weapons, i.e., jambia/jambe (sharp-edged weapon), button knives. Chilli powder was also used as a weapon of assault.

(3.) In the considered view of the trial court, despite most of the prosecution witnesses (32 in number) having turned hostile, the prosecution case stood established beyond reasonable doubt, through the unrefuted testimony of PW-1 as supported by the unrefuted part of testimony on the hostile witness, namely, Shasappa Reddi (PW-7). Hence, the trial court convicted the accused and sentenced them to undergo imprisonment as indicated in the tabular form hereunder :