MEHETTAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF CHHATTISGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant has preferred this criminal appeal under Section 374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 19.11.2001 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Korba, in Sessions Trial No. 194 of 1999, whereby the appellant has been convicted under Section 302 of the IPC and sentenced to undergo life imprisonment and to pay fine of Rs.500, in default of payment of fine to undergo additional SI for two months for committing homicidal death of Manglibai and sentenced to undergo life imprisonment and to pay fine of Rs.500, in default of payment of fine to further undergo SI for two months for committing homicidal death of Lilabai. Both the sentences are directed to run concurrently.

(2.) The case of the prosecution, in brief, is that on 26.2.1999 at about 11 a.m. the door of the house of the accused/appellant was closed from inside and the daughter of accused was weeping in the house. Hearing the noise of weeping, Sukh Singh (PW15), brother of the accused/appellant knocked at the door but none responded. Thereafter, Sukh Singh went to the village site and called Sitaram Kanwar (PW13) Mohitram, Garib Singh (PW8), Garud Singh (PW5) Bandhak Singh (PW14), Baliram (PW4) and Kotwar Ajar Das (PW10). They broke the door of the house of the appellant, entered in the house and saw Mangli Bai, Lila Bai and Savita Bai lying dead on the ground. They saw injuries on their bodies and a blood-stained axe lying on the spot. They caught the accused and came out from the house with him. Garud Singh (PW5) lodged the report (Ex.P16) of the incident at police station, Kartala.

(3.) During investigation, morgue intimations Ex.P13, Ex.P14 and Ex.P15 were recorded and inquest (Ex. P11, Ex.P12 and Ex.P10) over the dead bodies of Mangli Bai, Lila Bai and Savita Bai were prepared respectively, in presence of the witnesses. The dead bodies were sent for autopsy to Government Hospital, Kartala vide Ex.P27, Ex.P28 and Ex.P29 where Dr. B.S. Narbadiya (PW2) conducted post-mortem and gave his reports Ex.P2, Ex.P3 and Ex.P4. Investigating Officer prepared spot map vide Ex. P26. On memorandum of the appellant (Ex.P6) blood-stained weapon of offence-axe was taken into possession vide Ex.P7. Blood-stained clothes of the appellant were taken into possession vide Ex.P9. Blood-stained and plain-soil from the place of incident were taken into possession vide Ex.P8. The axe seized from the spot was sent for examination vide Ex.P30 for opinion of the doctor, who opined in his report (Ex.P5) that blood like substance is present over the axe, however, he advised to send the same to Forensic Science Laboratory for confirmation. He further opined that the wounds present over the persons of the deceased could be caused by the seized axe. Articles seized during investigation including clothes of the appellant and the axe were sent for chemical examination to FSL, Sagar from where the report vide Ex. P31 was obtained, according to which clothes of the deceased and the appellant as also the weapon of offence-axe were stained with blood. Further, the articles were sent for chemical examination to serologist, Calcutta, who gave his report vide Ex.P32 and opined that the articles were stained with human blood.