RAJU DEVADE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal has been filed by the appellant against the judgment of the High Court of Bombay dated 13.04.2007, dismissing the appeal filed by the appellant against the judgment of the Sessions Judge. The Sessions Judge had convicted the appellant for an offence under Section 302 IPC and sentenced him to undergo life imprisonment.

(2.) The prosecution case in nutshell is, Baby a girl of 18 years was residing at Mehkar with her parents, sister and brother. On 04.03.1989 in late evening, she was alone at house. Her parents had gone out and her brother and sister had gone to watch an evening movie. At about 9.30 pm when her brother Dilawarsha returned to the house from movie, he saw Baby in flames in bushes near the house. Dilawarsha used a quilt to put off the fire and thereafter on a push-cart took Baby to Rural Hospital, Mehkar. There being no doctor available, waterman Narayan Mahure and maid-servant Smt. Magar took the Baby in the hospital and cleaned her wounds and administered I. V. saline.

(3.) Police Sub-Inspector Meghrajani immediately came to the hospital and met the Baby. Baby gave a statement before the police Sub-Inspector that she was having a love affair with one Raju who was residing nearby. She was pregnant, she had pregnancy of two months but the same was aborted. She asked Raju to marry her. At 9.00 pm she saw Raju in the bye-lane by side of her house. On seeing him she again asked him to marry her. Raju poured kerosene on her person and then set her on fire with a burning match- stick. Police Sub-Inspector recorded the oral statement on which left thumb impression of Baby was also put.