CHELLAPPAN NAIR Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Twenty-six accused persons were tried under S.148, 149, 302, 307, 324, 326, 341, 379 and 34 I.P.C. by the Kottayam Additional Sessions Judge, who convicted eleven of them (accused 1, 2, 3, 9, 12, 14, 15, 21, 24, 25 and 26) under S.148, 324, 326 and 149 I.P.C. and acquitted the rest. The convicted persons were sentenced to undergo imprisonment for various terms ranging from seven years to three months - all sentences to run concurrently - for rioting and causing grievous hurt and hurt to two deceased persons and six others. Against this conviction, two appeals have been preferred, one by the eleven convicted accused and the other by the State for converting the conviction for grievous hurt into that of murder.

(2.) Parameswaran Nair and Narayanan Nair were direct brothers. Accused 1 and 2 are their nephews and Pw. 1 is a son by their common wife. Consequent on the partition of the tarwad properties, effected two years ago, without the junction of accused I and 2, the relationship between the deceased and the accused became very much strained. Bitterness born out of property disputes led up to litigation, both civil and criminal. The date of incident 25-5-1959, was the second posting date of C.C. No. 56 of 1959, a criminal case in which sixteen out of the twenty-six accused in this case were arraigned as accused by the deceased Narayanan Nair. On the previous posting date of that case, 12-5-1959, the parties had quarrelled between themselves on the way back home, in the course of which some of the accused tried to belabour Parameswaran Nair and Narayanan Nair at the Kurisummood Junction. So on 25-5-1959 Pw. 1 got down some persons Pws. 4, 5, 9, 10 and 11 for protection from Thiruvalla, through his maternal uncles Pws. 2 and 3 and to avoid the previous posting days experience, they took a longer route through the Kannanperur bund to reach their home. The criminal case C.C. No. 56 of 1959 was adjourned at about noon by the Magistrate. The accused left by the shorter Kurisummood route. The party of the deceased waited till 2 P.M. in their Vakils office and then left for their home by the Kannanperur route to avoid meeting the accused on the way. The deceaseds party consisted of ten persons including Parameswaran Nair, Narayanan Nair, Pws. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10 and 11. Of these

(3.) The post mortem certificate, Ext. P18 for examining the dead body of Parameswaran Nair, issued by Dr. V.C. Chacko, who died before his examination had to be proved by his senior officer, Pw. 7 Dr. John who knew Dr. Chackos signature and handwriting. Ext. P16 is the post mortem certificate issued by Dr. John who conducted Narayanan Nairs autopsy. The factum of death of Parameswaran Nair and Narayanan Nair was not disputed. It is amply proved by the inquest, the post mortem certificates and the oral evidence of their son Pw. 1 and others. Parameswaran Nair sustained six injuries, four of them being contused lacerated wounds on his head. The external injuries fractured his skull bones, lacerated his left lung and ruptured the meninges, the cause of death being Coma as a result of the injuries on the head. Narayanan Nair sustained fifteen injuries out of which eight were on his head, all contused lacerations of different dimensions. Injury No. 11 is a contusion on the left shoulder which completely crushed the spinous process. The cause of death is stated to be syncope due to shock and haemorrahage. Pw. 1 sustained only a contusion on the middle part of the right arm. Pw. 2 sustained eight injuries of which two are lacerated wounds on the head. The radius and ulna at the lower third of the right forearm have been fractured. Pw. 3 had also four lacerated injuries two on the head, one on the scapula and the fourth has fractured the right ulna. Pw. 4 sustained nine contused injuries of which three are on the head and the others on the shoulder, thigh and the clavicle. Ext. P24 is the wound certificate. Pw. 5 sustained six injuries in all, of which three are on the head. Ext. P26 is the wound certificate. Pw. 9 sustained six injuries in all, two lacerated wounds on the head and the others contusions on the left scapula, left forearm, left elbow and the right thumb. Ext. P28 is the wound certificate. Pw. 1 was treated as an out-patient and Pws. 2 to 5 and 9 as in-patients.