RAMESH Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant/accused has preferred this appeal aggrieved by the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 03.09.2016, whereunder accused No.1 was convicted for the offences punishable under Sections 498(A), 302 and 201 of IPC and acquitted accused No.2 for the very same offences, read with Section 34 of IPC.

(2.) The respondent-State is notified. We have heard the arguments of the learned advocate Sri.K.S.Patil for the appellant and the learned Addl.SPP Sri.V.M.Banakar for the respondent-State and we have carefully and cautiously gone through the judgment of the trial Court and have perused the materials on record, including the lower Court records.

(3.) It is the contention of the prosecution that the daughter of the complainant was given in marriage to accused No.1 and they started leading their matrimonial life. Out of their wedlock, she gave birth to two daughters and again the deceased became pregnant. It is further alleged that accused Nos.1 and accused No.2 being his mother, started ill treating and harassing the deceased alleging that, she does not know cooking and was not going to coolie work. They used to abuse, assault and force her to do coolie work and they caused mental and physical torture to the deceased. She used to inform the same to the complainant over phone. It is further alleged that prior to the alleged incident, the complainant called the elderly persons to the house of the accused and the persons suitably advised accused No.1- husband but, inspite of the said advise, the ill: treatment and mental torture continued by the accused persons and they were quarrelling with and harassing the deceased. It is further alleged that on 22.12.2013 at about 6.30 pm, one Mahadev Vital Kamble informed the complainant over phone that her daughter is dead and on hearing the same, the complainant and other persons immediately went to the spot and found the dead body of the daughter lying in the thorny bush, situated just nearby the house of the deceased, near the brick kiln and the body was burnt by pouring kerosene and setting fire. By looking to the said circumstances, the complainant suspected that the accused persons might have committed the murder of the deceased and in order to cause disappearance of the evidence, they have burnt the dead body and thrown it in the thorny bush. On the basis of the said complaint, a case has been registered in Crime No.171/2013 of Savalagi police station.