SUKUMARAN Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) APPELLANT Narayanan Sukumaran has been convicted for the murder of a small child Vinod by name aged about 5 years by throttling him and for having robbed him of his gold chain. For the offence punishable under s. 302, I. P. C: he has been sentenced to the extreme penalty of law and for the offence under S. 392, I. P. C. he has been sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for ten years. Criminal Appeal 240 of 1964 is filed by the accused against the aforesaid conviction. Reference by the learned Sessions judge under s. 374 Cr. P. C. , for confirmation of the sentence of death is also before us.

(2.) DECEASED Vinod is the son of Pw. 2 and his wife Pw. 5. They were residing in the house in Neerarianickal compound on the eastern side of Palai-Thodupuzha road. The property on the western side of this compound also belongs to Pw. 2 and there is a cinema theatre there. In between these two properties, there is an unused lane and on both sides of the lane there is a thick growth of shrubs and creepers. Pw. 2 is the contractor of a toddy shop situated on the western side of the road. Touching the toddy shop there is a bunk where Pw. 3 carries on his trade. On the morning of 19-7-64 when Pw. 2 was in his shop the boy Vinod went to the shop and after staying there for some time left the shop getting 6 paisa from his father for purchasing lozenges. The boy went to Pw. 3's bunk, got lozenges and a plantain fruit and proceeded northwards along the public road and turning towards the theatre compound. Pw. 4 a tapper of the toddy shop accompanied the boy up till the theatre and afterwards went northwards for his tapping work. He then saw the accused on the north-eastern side of the theatre. Thereafter Pw. 9 met the boy on the eastern side of the theatre and she asked the child to go home but she saw the accused who was standing on the foot-path beckoning the boy and the boy going to the place where the accused was standing. Pw. 10 another witness saw the accused at about 10. 30 a. m. emerging from the lane into the road in front of her house. He was in an agitated mood and she asked him what he was looking about. The accused replied there was nothing and enquired of her whether she had seen his father. The accused then proceeded towards Kollappally junction. In the meanwhile Pw. 5 the mother of Vinod finding that the boy had not returned home went to the toddy shop and enquired of Pw. 2. On being informed that the boy had already left the toddy shop both of them started in search of the boy. Pw. 3 the bunk man said that the boy had purchased lozenges and left the place. In the course of the search they learnt from Pw. 9 that the accused was seen beckoning the boy and that the boy had gone to him. By that time Pw. 4 the tapper came and he also informed Pw. 2 about seeing the accused on the northeastern corner of the theatre compound. While the search was going on Pws. 11 and 12 saw the dead body of Vinod in the unused lane. On information being received Pw. 2 hastened to the spot and found his son lying dead with marks of violence on his throat. He found the gold chain which the boy was wearing that morning missing. The dead body was then removed to the house. The same day at about 1 p. m. Pw. 13 a nephew of Pw. 2 reached the Meenachil police station about five and a half miles away from the scene of occurrence and gave the first information statement Ext. P-12 before the Sub Inspector of police Pw. 17. A case was registered. The Sub inspector then proceed to the house of Pw. 2 and held the inquest. After the inquest the dead body was sent for postmortem. Pw. 6 the Civil Surgeon attached to the Taluk Hospital, Meenachil conducted the autopsy. The same evening Pw. 18 the Circle Inspector reached the scene and took over the investigation. The accused was absconding and on 22-7-64 Pw. 16 a police constable arrested the accused and produced him before pw. 18. The accused was then questioned and on information furnished by him the gold chain M. O. 3 was taken into custody from a bundle of rags kept inside the southern room of the accused's house. The next day the accused was produced before the Additional First Class Magistrate, Meenachil who remanded him to custody. A requisition was made for recording his confessional statement. Pw. 7, the Additional First Class Magistrate after giving him time for reflection and after administering due warning recorded his confessional statement Ext. P-8. After completing the investigation the accused was charge-sheeted.

(3.) THE next question is whether the prosecution has succeeded in proving that it was the accused who was responsible for causing the death of the boy Vinod and robbing the gold chain M. O. 3 from him. THEre is no direct evidence and the whole case depends upon circumstantial evidence. But the circumstantial evidence afforded in this case is so clinching that there is no escape from the conclusion that it was the accused and accused alone who is responsible for the murder. That morning the boy had left his house and gone to the toddy shop. After remaining there for some time he took a few paise from his father and from Pw. 3's shop purchased lozenges and a plaintain fruit and left his shop towards his house. THE evidence of Pws. 4 and 9 would establish beyond doubt that the boy was last seen alive in the company of the accused in the precincts of the cinema theatre near the house of Pw. 2. THEre is no reason to doubt these two witnesses. Pw. 4 saw the accused near the cinema theatre while going for his tapping work and immediately afterwards Pw. 9 met the boy and found the accused beckoning him and the child going towards the accused. Not long after this another witness Pw. 10 saw the accused emerging to the road from the lane where subsequently the dead body of the boy was detected. THE accused was then in an agitated mood and was looking here and there and the witness questioned him. THEre is rib reason to doubt her evidence also. All these are witnesses against whom no enmity is even suggested.