JOSEPH @ BABY Vs. SUB INSPECTOR OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN Sessions Case No.187 of 1999 on the file of the Additional Sessions Court, Kottayam, 40 accused persons are charge -sheeted by the Inspector General of Police, State Crime Record Bureau, Police Headquarters, Trivandrum for the offences punishable under Sections 120 B, 363, 365, 366A, 368, 372, 373, 376, 376(2)(g), 392 and 109 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (for short, 'the IPC').

(2.) THE prosecution case is briefly as follows : PW3, the Prosecutrix (name withheld) was aged 16 years 3 months and 23 days at the time of occurrence in 1996. She is the daughter of PW1, Mani Markose, the then Postmaster of Munnar Post Office. His wife Eathamma, the mother of the Prosecutrix was then a Nurse in Surianalle Estate. PW1, his wife and their second daughter PW3 were residing in the quarters allotted to them situated at Surianalle Estate. A1 Raju and A2 Usha along with Dharmarajan hatched out a criminal conspiracy some days prior to 16.1.1996 at Adimaly to kidnap PW3 from the lawful guardianship of her parents and to secretly and wrongfully confine her to commit rape and gang rape on her and to sell her to other accused for the purpose of deriving illegal gain with intend to use her to illicit intercourse. The first accused in pursuance to the criminal conspiracy kidnapped PW3 from the lawful guardianship of her parents at 4.30 p.m. on 16.1.1996 by inducement and in pursuance thereto, PW3 left the School hostel in Munnar to join A1 at Adimaly and thereafter to go along with him to Kothamangalam. Before reaching there, the first accused disappeared. In such a perplexed situation, late in the evening at 7.30 p.m., PW3 decided to go from Kothamangalam to her maternal aunt's house at Kottayam. PW3 boarded a private bus to Muvattupuzha. In that bus, PW3 noticed the presence of A2 Usha. Thereafter, PW3 alighted at Muvattupuzha and went in an auto -rickshaw to K.S.R.T.C. Bus Station to catch a bus to Kottayam. PW3 boarded a K.S.R.T.C bus which was going to Kottayam. In that bus also PW3 noticed the presence of A2 Usha. PW3 alighted at Kottayam Bus Stand. She was frightened to go through the by -lanes to reach the house of her maternal aunt. Therefore, PW3 decided to catch a bus to Mundakayam where her maternal uncle was residing. But there was no bus to Mundakayam during that night. It was at that time A2 Usha approached her calling her real name. Thereafter, A2 introduced PW3 to one person by name Sreekumar, whom PW3 realised later as Dharmarajan. Dharmarajan promised to take her to Mundakayam in the next morning. Dharmarajan took PW3 to Metro Lodge near the Bus Stand at Kottayam by mis -representing that his mother was residing in that lodge. PW3 followed him to that lodge on the belief that he would take her to her uncle's house at Mundakayam. But Dharmarajan raped PW3 during that night in that lodge. On the next day, Dharmarajan took PW3 to Ernakulam and thereafter to different places like Kumali, Kambam, Palakkad and Vanimel at Kozhikode, again to Kumali, Muvattupuzha, Aluva, Theni, Kanyakumari, Thiruvananthapuram, Kuravilangad, Kottayam, again to Kumali, Muvattupuzha and again to Kottayam still again to Theni, Kumali, Kambam again to Kumali, Kottayam and to Muvattupuzha and finally enfreed her in the morning of 26.2.1996. In the meanwhile, PW3 was presented to several persons including the appellants except accused Nos.1, 2, 17, 38 and 39.

(3.) BEFORE the Additional Sessions Court, on the prosecution side, PWs. 1 to 97 were examined and Exts.P1 to 182(i) were marked and Mos. 1 to 21 were identified. On the defence side, DWs. 1 to 10 were examined and Exts.D1 to 30 were marked. The learned Additional Sessions Judge, on considering the evidence on record, acquitted accused Nos. 23, 26, 32 and 36. Accused No.40 died during the pendency of the case and the charge against him was abated. The other accused were convicted and sentenced as follows: