STATE Vs. SHIV KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) State prefers the present appeal against the judgment dtd. 30/1/2018 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge (South-East), Saket Courts, Delhi in case FIR No.217/2012 under Ss. 302/201/34 IPC and 174A IPC registered at PS Jamia Nagar, Delhi.

(2.) Leave to appeal was granted by this Court vide order dtd. 27/3/2019. Since the respondents could not furnish the surety bond, vide the order dtd. 23/5/2019, the bond amount was reduced. However, the respondents could not even furnish the same and did not appear. Consequently, initially bailable warrants and then non-bailable warrants were issued vide order dtd. 16/12/2019 against the respondents as they were not appearing and again on 5/2/2020. Pursuant to the non-bailable warrants, Shiv Kumar was arrested on 25/3/2022 and produced before this Court, when he was remanded to judicial custody and further, non-bailable warrants were issued against Rakesh, respondent No.2 who has been arrested on 6/5/2022. Hence, the two respondents are in judicial custody. Thus the appeal is heard on merits.

(3.) Briefly, case of the prosecution is that on 22/3/2012, Praveen Bano (PW-2), wife of Yakoob lodged a missing complaint in police station " Jamia Nagar claiming that her husband left the house at about 12.00 noon on 19/3/2012 and informed her that he was going to Dhobi Ghat, Yamuna River alongwith Kanhaiya. In the rukka based whereon FIR No.217/2012 was registered at PS Jamia Nagar, Praveen Bano claimed that she had given a missing report on 20/3/2012, which was recorded vide DD No.48, however, the said DD No.48 was never exhibited by the prosecution. Based on the complaint of Praveen Bano dtd. 22/3/2012 the abovenoted FIR was registered. It may be noted that in the meantime, DD No.20A was recorded on 23/3/2012 at PS Jamia Nagar at about 02.55 PM informing that a dead body of a male has been recovered behind Shamshan Ghat, Okhla. Dead body of Yakoob was identified by Sameeruddin, the elder brother of Yakoob and his father-in-law. On the missing report as also the recovery of the dead body, the investigation started and body was sent to postmortem which was conducted vide Ex.11/A. Alongwith the application for conducting the postmortem, it was noted that the body has been identified by Sameeruddin and Gulsher, brotherr and father-in-law, respectively, of the deceased and that the body was recovered on 23/3/2012 at the instance of accused Shiv Kumar.