BANDARUPALLI VENKATESWARLU Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Though seven persons were originally put up for trial in the Sessions Court. Krishna Division, Machilipatnam, we are now concerned only with one of them Bandarupalli Venkateswarlu, who was arraigned as accused No. 3. The learned Sessions Judge convicted the appellant under Section 304, Part II, Penal Code, and the remaining six under Section 304 read with Section 149. The judgment of the Sessions Court was challenged by the accused as well as the State Government. The High Court of Andhra Pradesh allowed the appeal filed by the State partially by convicting the appellant under Section 302 and accused Nos. 5 and 6 under Section 302 read with Section 34. All of these were sentenced to im-prisonment for life. The remaining four were acquitted by the High Court.

(2.) The special leave petitions filed by accused Nos. 5 and 6 were dismissed by this Court on September 14, 1970. The special leave petition filed by the State of Government against the acquittal of accused Nos. 1, 2, 4 and 7 was also dismissed by this Court on the same date. The jail petition filed by the appellant came before this Court subsequently when special leave was granted to the appellant to appeal against the judgment of the High Court.

(3.) The incident out of which the prosecution arises happened at about 4.30 p.m. on February 24, 1968 in a place called Kanchikacherla. The deceased Arikatla Kotesu a young harijan boy used to eke out his livelihood by working as a coolie. On February 24, 1968, he was passing through the village of Kanchinkacherla when the appellant and two other accused are alleged to have questioned him whether he had stolen their brass utensils. They tied his hands with a rope and tried to extort a confession from him. The boy admitted that he had sold the utensils to a hotel-keeper who, at the demand of the accused, produced the utensils. The accused then brought the boy to a tobacco barn. They tied him with a rope and asked him to divulge details of the other thefts committed by him. Accused No. 6 is alleged to have poured kerosene on the boy after which the appellant lighted a match and set fire to his clothes.