STATE OF KERALA Vs. POULOSE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Respondent Poulose and his wife, deceased Annamma, were blessed with two children. They were aged 2 and 4. The elder was with Annamma's father PW 6. While the other three alone were in the house on 3-8-85, Annamma had homicidal death inside the house in between 8 and 9 PM. On the basis of the extra judicial confession made by the respondent and after seeing the dead body, PW 1 gave information to the police. Next morning, appellant surrendered before the police. Next morning, appellant surrendered before the police station. In the trial on murder charge appellant was acquitted. State has come up in appeal.

(2.) Medical evidence of PW 12 and Ext. P7 post mortem certificate prepared by him show that death was homicidal and not suicidal. Cause of death is strangulation by tightening a towel as ligature around the neck. The ligature with the knot was in position around the neck in the dead body. It was so seen by PWs 1 to 3 as well as PWs 4 and 12. There was contusion around the neck involving subcutaneous tissues and sterno mastoid muscles. Upper bones of the thyroid cartilage were broken. PW 12 emphatically said that application of so much force which caused the above injuries coupled with the knot in position is impossible in a case of suicide.

(3.) There is no direct evidence regarding murder. So also, this is an appeal against acquittal. Even then, as in this case, when the circumstances established by the prosecution evidence are so clear and convincing in favour of the guilt of the accused and capable of excluding all hypothesis in favour of his innocence, and the conclusions arrived at by the trail Judge are not at all reasonably possible, interference is a must. The reasonings adopted, both factual and legal, could even be turned perverse.