STATE OF UTTARAKHAND Vs. PHOOLWA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal filed by the State which arises out of judgment and order dated 04.03.2013 passed by Sessions Judge, Udham Singh Nagar in Sessions Trial No. 306 of 2011, whereby the three accused, namely, Smt. Phoolwa, Muni Maharaj and Shiv Raj who were charged and faced trial for an offence under Section 304 (read with Section 34 of IPC), have been acquitted by the trial court.

(2.) As per the case of the prosecution, the complainant Raj Kumari lodged an FIR at Police Station Kotwali, Kichha (District Udham Singh Nagar) on 01.09.2011 at 09:10 AM. The FIR states that last evening i.e. on 31.08.2011, at about 06:00 PM her neighbours, namely, Ms. Phoolwa (wife of Late Rajendra), and her two sons Muni Maharaj and Shiv Raj had beaten up her husband on some dispute regarding cutting of few branches of a tree. When an alarm was raised by her husband, other neighbours, namely, Dhaneshwar, Kailash and others came to his rescue and the assailants ran away. The complainant with the help of her neighbours took her husband, who was seriously injured, to Kichha Government Hospital, from where he was referred to the Government Hospital at Rudrapur (District Headquarters). He was taken to the hospital in a No. 108 Ambulance, but in the hospital he was declared dead by the doctors.

(3.) The inquest was done on 01.09.2011 where the opinion given by the "panchas" was that since the cause of death appears to be the injuries sustained by the deceased on his head, the body be sent for postmortem.