SHIVAKUMAR Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition is filed by the accused No.4 under Sec. 439 of Cr.P.C. seeking bail in Crime No.51/2022 of APMC Navanagar Police Station, Hubballi, registered for the offences punishable under Ss. 120B , 109 , 201 , 202 , 302 read with Sec. 149 of IPC.

(2.) The case of the prosecutions is that, one Smt. Khatunabi W/o Ismailsab Killedar has filed complaint against unknown culprits alleging that, the deceased Ismailsab S/o Fakrusab aged about 54 years is her husband and the first wife of her deceased husband by name Smt. Mehaboobi Killedar died in the year 2020 due to ill-health and thereafter she got married the deceased in the presence of elders and started to reside with him, and her deceased husband got two children through his first wife i.e, Dawalamunni, (accused No.5) and Fakrusab (accused No.1) and the said Davalamunni got married with Tousifahamad Kalekhan of Gadag and the other son Fakrusab is unmarried. It is further stated that, the deceased husband used to attend the duty on every day through his Activa Scooty vehicle and on 28/6/2022 at about 7:00 a.m, he went to attend his duty and returned from the duty at about 12:30 noon for taking rest and at that time, he got received phone call from his office and thereafter by informing her went to the office by taking his scooty at 5:30 p.m, and on that day, when she was in the house, she received a phone call from her father-in-law Aminsab Nagaral stating that, he got received missed call from her husband and in turn he called to him, but some third persons received the phone and informed him that, the dead body of her husband lying near Law College, Sutagatti road and some miscreants tied with rope or some other article to the neck of her husband Ismailsab and his dead body was taken by the KSRP Police to the SDM hospital. Thereafter, she informed the same to her son Fakrusab and then she went to SDM hospital, Dharwad and saw the dead body of her husband and it had mark appearing around his neck. Then she suspected that, some miscreants have committed the murder of her husband by tying rope to his neck with having ill intention and she lodged the complaint against unknown persons. The said complaint came to be registered in Crime No.51/2022 of APMC Navanagar Police Station, Hubballai against unknown person for the offence under Sec. 302 of IPC. During the course of investigation, the investigating officer has arrested accused Nos.1 to 3 and as per confession made by them in their voluntary statements, they arrested daughter of the deceased by name Smt. Dawalmunni (accused No.5) and on the basis of her voluntary statement, the investigating officer has collected audio clippings for sending them to FRSL for opinion, by that time investigating agency found that accused Nos.1 and 5 along with the other accused making conversation and it also come to the light that accused No.6 is also knew about the incident in question and after throwing the body there are conversation about managing it. During the investigation, the accused Nos.1 to 5 came to be arrested on 30/6/2022 and accused No.6 was arrested on 12/7/2022. The police after completing the investigation filed charge-sheet against the accused Nos.1 to 6 for the offences punishable under Ss. 120B , 109 , 201 , 202 , 302 read with Sec. 149 of IPC. The accusations in the charge-sheet is that, the deceased Ismailsab after the death of his first wife, got married with the complainant in the year 2021 against the wish of his children i.e. accused Nos.1 to 5. The complainant used to care only the deceased Ismailsab. The deceased Ismailsab was not bothered about performing the marriage of his son and had not made any property in his son's name and had not thought about his future and the deceased has given application before the Sub-Registrar, Hubballi South. After getting marriage registration from the Sub-Registrar Office, the deceased Ismailsab thought of obtaining VRS from the Police Department and had also intention to drag out the accused No.1 from his house. Therefore, the accused No.1 was frustrated and had intention to kill his father and the same thing he had been telling to the accused Nos.5 and 6. The accused No.1 had also told the same to the accused Nos.2 to 4. It is further accusation that, on 28/6/2022, the accused No.1 with an intention to murder his father Ismailsab, met accused No.2 and told him the same. Therefore, the accused No.1 and 2 took auto rickshaw of C.W.28 and as per the phone call of accused No.2, his brother accused No.4 took accused No.3 in his two wheeler belonging to C.W.29 to Sangam Bar, Navanagar. There, the accused No.2 has brought auto rickshaw belonging to C.W.28 and accused No.1 has brought three threads of jute from his house in the two wheeler belonging to C.W.29. As per the earlier discussions held between the accused Nos.1, 5 and 6 to kill Ismailsab on the same day, accused Nos.1 to 4 gathered in Sangam Bar, Navanagar road, Hubballi and planned to kill Ismailsab. The accused No.1 explained his plan to accused No.5 and got transferred the amount of Rs.5,000.00 from account to accused No.5 through 'Phone Pay' and accused No.4 gave amount of Rs.5,000.00 to the accused No.3. Then the accused No.1 through phone call informed the Ismailsab to come backside of Navanagar BRTS Bus stop for site inspection. Therefore, the Ismailsab came there on his scooty. Then, the accused Nos.1 to 4 at about 6.30 p.m., by leaving the motorbike behind the Navanagar BRTS Bus stop, took the deceased Ismailsab at BRTS Bus stop backside road in the auto rickshaw belonging to C.W.28. The accused Nos.1 to 3 along with Ismailsab went in the auto rickshaw and the accused No.4 on the motorcycle belonging to C.W.27, came to Udayagiri road, through Sattur SDM Dental College and Hospital compound side road. There, the accused Nos.2 to 4 tightly held the hands and legs of the Ismailsab, the accused No.3 by wearing hand gloves which were brought by him along with accused No.1 tied the Jute thread to the neck of Ismailsab and pulled it tightly and committed the murder of Ismailsab. It is further stated in the charge- sheet that the accused Nos.1 to 4 after murdering the Ismailsab, accused Nos.1 and 2 took the dead body of the Ismailsab in the auto rickshaw belonging to C.W.28 towards backside of Navanagar BRTS Bus stop and made a phone call to accused No.6 and informed the news of murder of the deceased to accused Nos.1 and 6 and accused Nos.1 and 2 as suggested by accused No.6 with an intention to destroy the evidence took the dead body of the Ismailsab in the auto rickshaw and kept his body beside Sattur road, which is adjacent road to Hubbballi Navanagar, Karnataka Sate Law University compound to show as the Ismailsab has fell down from the bike in a road accident and destroyed the evidence. It is further stated in the charge-sheet that the accused No.5 knowing well about the murder of the Ismialsab committed by the accused Nos.1 to 4, with an intention to protect them, she went to the police station and wrote a complaint as some unknown persons have committed the murder. The accused No.4 who is in the judicial custody, filed Criminal Misc. No.5463/2022 seeking bail and the same came to be rejected by the V Additional District and Sessions Judge, Dharwad, sitting at Hubballi, by order dtd. 15/10/2022. Therefore, the petitioner/accused No.4 is before this Court, seeking bail.

(3.) Heard the arguments of the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned HCGP for the respondent- State.