MOHAMMED FALEEL Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant stands convicted for offences under Secs.364, 394 read with 397 and 302, I.P.C. and on being convicted, he was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a period of six years, rigorous imprisonment for a period of seven years and imprisonment for life respectively. THE allegation against the appellant before the trial Court as could be seen from the charge is that at 9.00 a.m. on 26.10.1992, he kidnapped a girl, Fathima Natchiya, aged about 12 years, with a view to commit theft of gold ornaments (M.O.8 silver anklets, M.O.9 a gold chain and M.O.10 ear rings) and after removing the said gold ornaments, caused her death by throwing her into a well. To prove the above allegation, the prosecution, before the trial Court, examined P.Ws.1 to 14 and marked Exs.1 to 15 as well as M.Os.1 to 12.

(2.) THE case of the prosecution as could be discerned from the oral and documentary evidence can be briefly summarised as follows: P.W. 1 is the mother of the deceased Fathima Natchiya and that Fathima Natchiya was aged about 12 years. THE husband of P.W. 1 was working in an Arabian country. THE deceased used to go to a Mosque to take her lessons in Scriptures and the accused was a teacher. He was living opposite to the house of P.W. 1. 40 or 50 children used to attend the classes and P.W.7 is one of the classmates of the deceased. At about 7.00 a.m. on 26.10.1992, the deceased left her house for the mosque to attend the classes and at that time, she was wearing a rose colour blouse and a rose colour skirt with a blue colour half-saree. She was also wearing a pair of gold bangles, a chain, gold ear rings and silver anklets as well as a small gold ear dots. As she did not return home at 8.30 a.m., which is the normal time, P.W. 1 went to the mosque to find out the whereabouts of her daughter. She found the accused coming in the opposite direction and questioned him about her daughter. THE accused told P.W. 1 that the deceased will return home. P.W. 1 went in search of her daughter. She enquired at the house of Jalakammal, P.W.2, who informed her that at about 8.00 or 9.00 a.m., the deceased left the bags in her house and went away and that she did not know the whereabouts of the deceased. THE enquiries of P.W. 1 revealed that the accused was seen taking the deceased. P.W.7, the classmate of the deceased, gave the said information to P.W. 1. THErefore, P.W. 1 went in search of the accused, but he could not be found. She requested the villagers to search for her daughter in the neighbouring villages, but could not succeed in tracing her daughter. THEreafter, at 5.15 p.m., she proceeded to Peravoorani Police Station and gave a complaint, which was reduced into writing by P.W. 12, the head constable. THE said complaint is Ex.P-1. P.W. 12, on the basis of the complaint, Ex.P-1, registered a case in Crime No.682 of 1992 under the caption "child missing". Ex.P-11 is the copy of the printed first information report. Investigation was taken up by P.W. 13, the Inspector of Police.

(3.) THE case of the prosecution is that Fathima Natchiya died on account of homicidal violence. To prove the said fact, P.Ws. 10 and 11 were examined. P.W. 10 is the doctor, who conducted autopsy and who issued Ex.P-6, the post-mortem certificate and Ex.P-7, the final opinion. THE doctor, who conducted autopsy, could not come to the conclusion as to the cause of death since the body was in a highly decomposed stage. THE investigating officer, therefore, was constrained to seek expert opinion from P.W.11, who was the Professor in Forensic Medicine at Thanjavur Medical College Hospital. P.W. 11 gave evidence before the Court and stated that the deceased must have died on account of drowning and also gave reasons, which he mentioned in Ex.P-10. It is of course true that the doctor, in cross-examination, has stated that he cannot say definitely whether the deceased would have fallen into the well accidentally or was deliberately thrown in. A perusal of Ex.P-2, the observation mahazar, shows that the deceased could not have fallen into the well accidentally since it had walls on all the four sides. We, therefore, rule out the possibility of the deceased falling into the well by accident and that she must have been pushed into the well by someone. Once we come to the conclusion that the deceased had been pushed into the well, then we cannot but hold that the deceased died on account of homicidal violence.