MURARI LAL CHAUDHARY Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Vide impugned judgment and order dated 15-2-2008, the appellant has been convicted for the offence of having murdered Jag Narain in the intervening night of 10th and 11th April, 2003 at house No. 721, Second Floor, Punjabi Basti, Anand Parbat, New Delhi.

(2.) With respect to the testimony of Dolly P.W. 2, her mother Smt. Sangeeta P.W. 4, Kundan Lal P.W. 5, Kishan Kumar P.W. 6 and Ajay Mishra P.W. 16 the learned trial Judge has returned a finding that the testimony of said witnesses proves that the appellant along with deceased Jag Narain and Ajay Mishra (P.W. 16) were sharing a single room in building bearing No. 721, Punjabi Basti, Anand Parbat, New Delhi on the second floor thereof.

(3.) With reference to the testimony of P.W. 2 and P.W. 3, the learned trial Judge has returned a finding that their testimony establishes that around 9.00 or 9.30 p.m. in the night of 10th April, 2003, the appellant was seen in the room which was taken on rent by the appellant, the deceased and P.W. 16. With reference to the testimony of P.W. 2 and P.W. 5 the learned trial Judge has held that their testimony establishes that from the room in question sound of a blunt object being impounded was emanating. With reference to the testimony of P.W. 2 the learned trial Judge has held that the same establishes that soon after the sound of a blunt object being banged coming from the room in question, the appellant was seen coming out and proceeding towards the common toilet. Thereafter, he was seen washing a towel and a vest. Since the post-mortem on the dead body of the deceased was conducted at around 1.30 p.m. on 14-4-2003; the dead body was recovered from the room at around 7.30 a.m. on 11-4-2003, there being a delay of over 3 days in conducting the post-mortem, it is apparent that the probable time of the death of the deceased could be stated only in the broadest terms and not with even a rough estimation of the likely hour when the deceased died. Thus, with reference to the testimony of P.W. 2 and P.W. 5, who claim to have heard a banging sound emanating from the room in question, the learned trial Judge has held that the same probabilizes the fact that the deceased was murdered in his room anywhere between 9.00 p.m. to 10.00 p.m.