MURUGAN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Aggrieved over the conviction and sentence ordered by the trial Court, for the offence under Sec. 302 IPC, the appellant/sole accused has filed this appeal.

(2.) The brief facts of the prosecution is as follows:- The deceased Jeya @ Jeyakala is the wife of the appellant/accused. They married 12 years prior to the occurrence and they have four children. PW1 is the father-in-law of the accused. The accused and his wife used to visit the house of PW1, which is situated at Vasavappaneri Village. Prior to the date of occurrence, the accused visited PW1's house with cooked chicken gravy and at that time, the accused had developed a quarrel with the relatives of PW1. After pacifying the quarrel, PW1 brought the accused to his house and PW1 stayed in the house of the accused and the deceased. On the date of occurrence, i.e., 27/4/2015, the accused, deceased and their four children were inside their house and at about 04.45 a.m., there arose a quarrel between the accused and the deceased, in which, the accused attacked the deceased with sickle indiscriminately and the deceased succumbed to cut injuries. Thereafter, PW1 lodged Ex.P1- complaint statement, before the respondent/police and PW18-Sub-Inspector of Police in the respondent police station, recorded the complaint statement, reduced the same in writing and registered Ex.P9-FIR at 08.00 a.m., on 27/4/2015, against the appellant/accused in Crime No.140 of 2015, for the offences under Ss. 302 and 506(ii) IPC, and forwarded the same to the Judicial Magistrate Court concerned and also forwarded copies of FIR to the higher authorities concerned. PW20-Inspector of Police(in-charge), Srivaikundam Police Station, commenced the investigation at 09.30 a.m., and went to the place of occurrence and prepared Ex.P10-Observation Mahazar and Ex.P11-Rough Sketch and also seized MO5-blood stained concrete mixture and MO6-sample concrete mixture, under Ex.P12-Mahazar. Thereafter, he conducted inquest over the dead body in the presence of Panchayatars and prepared inquest report under Ex.P13, then, he sent the dead body to Srivaikundam Government Hospital, through a Constable, for postmortem and then, he recorded the statement of the witnesses and handed over the case file to PW21-Inspector of Police, Srivaikundam Police Station. PW17, Medical Officer attached to Srivaikundam Government Hospital, conducted autopsy of the body of the deceased and found the following injuries:-

(3.) PW17 opined that the deceased died of shock and haemorrhage due to the injuries sustained by her 12 to 24 hours prior to postmortem and issued Ex.P8-postmortem certificate. PW21 continued the investigation, arrested the accused on 29/4/2015, in the presence of the witnesses and recorded his voluntary confession. The admissible portion of the confession was marked as Ex.P14 and pursuant to the same, PW21 seized MO1-blood stained sickle and MO7-blood stained lungi, under Ex.P15-Mahazar and then, he remanded the accused to judicial custody and sent the material objects to the Court concerned and finally, after completing the investigation, laid a final report against the accused, before the learned Judicial Magistrate concerned.