VINEET KUMAR CHAUHAN Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal under Section 2(a) of the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970 has been preferred against the judgment of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in Government Appeal No. 415 of 2000. By the impugned judgment, the appeal filed by the State of Uttar Pradesh has been allowed and the appellant Vineet Kumar Chauhan has been convicted under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, ("IPC" for short) for causing the murder of Smt. Premwati. He has been sentenced to suffer imprisonment for life.

(2.) The genesis of the prosecution case, in brief, was that on 13.10.1993 at about 11.50 a.m., one Sri Krishna Sharma (P.W.1), husband of the deceased, lodged an F.I.R. with the police station Majhola, District Moradabad to the effect that on that day, at about 9.45 a.m., when he alongwith his wife and children was watching television, the appellant who was living opposite their house and was a cable operator along with his servant Dharamveer, came to their house and tried to persuade his son-Ravindra Sharma (P.W.2) to take a cable connection from them. Not being interested in the cable connection, they declined the request of the appellant whereupon an altercation took place between the appellant and P.W.2. The complainant and his wife intervened and asked the appellant to leave their house. The appellant went to his house, brought out the licensed revolver of his father and opened indiscriminate firing towards complainant"s house from the door of his house. Some bullets hit the door of the house of Sri Krishna Sharma and while his wife, the victim, was closing the door, one of the bullets hit her in the jaw. Sri Krishna Sharma brought his injured wife to the hospital for treatment and thereafter lodged the F.I.R.

(3.) The victim was examined by Dr. Jagmal Singh, P.W.4. The following injuries were found on her person: