RAMASWAMY Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal under the provisions of the Supreme court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act. The sole appellant wastried for an offence punishable under Section 302 Indian Penal Code and was acquitted by the trial court. The State preferred an appeal and a division bench of the High court reversed the order of the acquittal and convicted the appellant under section 302 Indian Penal Code and sentenced him to imprisonment for life. The prosecution case is as follows:

(2.) The deceased Pinna Thevar, the accused and the material witnesses, namely, PWs 1 to 4 were residents of Village Aryapatti. One Karuppiah Thevar, pw 14, mortgaged with possession an extent of 52 cents of land to Kalichi Ammal, the maternal aunt of the deceased for a period of 3 years and borrowed a loan of Rs. 5,000. 00. Public Witness 14 wanted to dispose of the land on behalf of Kalichi ammal and the accused competing with the deceased manoeuvred to get the land sold to one Jayabarathi Ammal. Therefore, there was enmity between the two. There was an incident where Public Witness 7, son of the deceased, beat Poonuswami, brother of the accused and in that connection there was a panchayat. The panchayatdars threatened to deal with the culprits. Since then the accused and the deceased were not on cordial terms and relations were strained very much. On 10/8/1977 the accused and PWs 1 to 4 had sent their cotton to the Theni cotton Market. The accused and PWs 1 to 3 sent their cotton to the shop of K. Rathinasami Nadar and K. Nagarajan who were the commission agents. On 11/8/1977 Public Witness 4 sent his cotton to the shop of S. S. K. P. Commission Merchants in Theni. They arrived at Theni by about 11. 00 a. m. and the price of cotton was not fixed till 6. 00 p. m. on that date. Meanwhile, the accused, PWs 2 and 3 went over there. The price was fixed at about 6. 00 p. m. Public Witness 18 who was employed as an accountant in the shop of K. R. K. N. told them that the cotton sent by them could be weighed only on the next day and the price due to each of them could be paid. He requested them to stay overnight. Public Witness 4 took the deceased with him to the shop of S. S. K. P. in which Public Witness 11 is employed in order to get the sum of Rs. 5,000. 00 due to him towards the price of the cotton he had sent. The deceased and Public Witness 4 waited in the shop of S. S. K. P. commission merchants till about 6.15 p. m. Thereafter the sum of Rs. 5,000. 00 payable to Public Witness 4 was paid at about 7. 00 p. m. Receiving the money Public Witness 4 and the deceased went to the bus stand at theni at about 7.15 p. m. and waited there till about 8.15 p. m. to get a seat in the bus proceeding to their village. However, they could not get seats and therefore Public Witness 4 told the deceased that some residents of their village might have gone over to the shop of K. R. K. N. and that they might have to go to there, meet them and stay with them that night and return to the village the next morning by the first bus. So the deceased and Public Witness 4 went to the shop of K. R. K. N. The accused, pws 1 to 3 were already there. PWs 1 to 4, the deceased and the accused waited in the shop till about 10. 00 p. m. chit chatting. In the meantime PWs 1 to 3 the deceased and the accused went to the Woodland Hotel in Theni Cumbarn Road. After taking supper all the six proceeded towards the north in order to go to k. R. K. N. commission merchants. The accused suddenly turned to Pinna Thevar and asking him "are you not the person who is creating ill feelings and enmity - So saying whipped out a knife from his waist and stabbed him on the right side of his abdomen near the flank and ran away. A report was given. The injured was taken to the hospital and was treated. On 12/8/1977 at 12.30 a. m. Public Witness 5, Dr A. Rajan Babu who was a Medical Officer attached to the government Hospital Theni examined Pinna Thevar who was sent to him by thepolice with a memo and found on him a stab wound on the right side of the upper abdomen 1 1/2" x 1" entering into the abdomen. He was then sent to erskine Hospital Madura. He was treated but he died 3 days later. The post- mortem was conducted and the doctor found sutured stab and incised wound. On the opening of the abdomen the sutured wound over the anterior wall of the stomach 2.5 cm in length through and through with purulent material with pus cells. The posterior wall of the stomach showed a perforation I cm x 5 cm through and through with congested margine (sic) and purulent material at that time. Peritoneal cavity contained 250 ml of turbid fluid with pus cells. The stomach contained 15 mls of grey coloured turbid fluid with pus like material. Cut S. of all other organs were pale. Lungs and small intestines were congested. Public Witness 8, Dr Thagarajan found that the deceased would appear to have died due to complication of injury sustained by him due to peritonitis. After completion of the investigation a charge-sheet was laid. Accused was examined under Section 313 and he pleaded not guilty. The prosecution relied on the evidence of PWs 1 to 4, the eyewitnesses. The trial court on the basis of surmises rejected the evidence of eyewitnesses.

(3.) We have scrutinised the reasons given by the trial court and there is no doubt that they do not stand judicial scrutiny. The High court having once again considered the entire evidence held that there is evidence of independent witnesses which is fully corroborated by other testimony. In this view of the matter the High court set aside the order of acquittal and convicted the appellant under Section 302 Indian Penal Code.