HARI KISHAN MANDAL Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) APPELLANT Hari Kishan Mandal alongwith co-accused Ram Kishan Mandal and Jai Prakash Mehto were sent to trial in FIR No.82/1993 P.S. Chitranjan Park; and the fate of the three was decided in Sessions Trial No.30/1996. Whereas Hari Kishan Mandal was charged for the offence punishable under Section 302/392/394 IPC, the other two were charged for the offence punishable under Section 411 IPC i.e. dishonestly receiving stolen property. Vide impugned judgment and order dated September 09, 1997, Hari Kishan Mandal has been convicted for the offence of murder and voluntarily causing hurt during robbery the other two have been acquitted. The State has not challenged the acquittal of Ram Kishan Mandal and Jai Prakash Mehto and thus qua them it would be sufficient for us to note that the reason for the acquittal was unsatisfactory evidence led pertaining to alleged recovery of the stolen property from them. As regards Hari Kishan Mandal the conviction is based upon the last seen theory which is based upon the testimony of Smt.Santra PW-1, Ms.Rita Khosla PW-2, Rajesh Kohli PW-4 and Roshan Lal Kohli PW-22 who were the part-time domestic help in the family of the deceased and the daughter, son and husband respectively of the deceased; and the recovery of stolen property from the person of Hari Kishan Mandal and on his disclosure statement keys of the house where the murder took place being recovered.

(2.) IT is the case of the prosecution that Hari Kishan Mandal was employed as a full time domestic help by Roshan Lal Kohli and his wife Vidya Rani (the deceased), who were residing on the ground floor of House No.M-23, Greater Kailash, Part-II, New Delhi and Smt.Santra PW-1 was a part-time domestic help who used to wash the utensils and clean and mop the floor of the house. On the unfortunate day when Vidya Rani was found dead and her body tied with a rope i.e. on April 29, 1993, the house was found ransacked and Hari Kishan Mandal was found absconding. At the time of his arrest the personal search of Hari Kishan Mandal yielded a gold necklace with a pendent (Ex.P-12) which was identified to be the necklace and the pendent of the deceased by her daughter Ms.Rita Khosla PW-2. As per the prosecution Hari Kishan Mandal got recovered a bunch of keys (Ex.P-13) pursuant to his disclosure statement which were identified by Ms.Rita Khosla as the keys of the family household. We need not note the case of the prosecution vis-a-vis the two co-accused who were charged for the offence punishable under Section 411 IPC on account of the fact that both have been acquitted by learned Trial Judge, disbelieving evidence led against them.

(3.) IN the statement Ex.PW-4/A Rajesh Kohli informed that Hari Kishan Mandal was a domestic help and since Hari Kishan Mandal was found absconding the finger of suspicion pointed towards him, but what happened the next day after would be noted by us after noting the investigation at the scene of the crime on the day when the crime was detected and proceedings conducted in the house.