IN RE: SREERANGAYEE Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant was charged with an offence of murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, in that she on 9th April, 1971 between 8 and 10 a.m. committed murder of five of her children aged between 11 and 1 1/2 years and lastly with an offence under Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code, in that she at about the same time in the course of the same transaction attempted to commit suicide by jumping into a well belonging to one Maria Pillai in Shanmugha Nagar, Dadagapatti, Salem District.

(2.) The prosecution case is as follows: P.W. 6 Perumal, the husband of the appellant (accused) married the accused about 14 years ago. They had five children viz.: (1) Madesh, a boy aged about 11 years, (2) Pappathi, a girl aged seven years, (3) Mani, a girl aged six years, (4) Devan, a boy aged about 4 1/2 years, and (5) a female child aged about 1 1/2 years (not named). The husband and wife were living with their children in a rented house belonging to Raja Mudaliar in Shanmugha Nagar, Dadagapatti. The husband was earning by stitching gunny bags. He was earning per day Rs. 5 or Rs. 6. He was also having a bullock cart with which he would earn Rs. 6 or Rs. 7 per day. The husband had illicit intimacy with one Paivathi (P.W. 12) and Parvathi used to stay with him in his house at Shanmugha Nagar, Dadagapatti. The accused and P.W. 6 were residing with their children in the house of P.W. 13, Raju Mudaliar on a rent of Rs. 10 per month and P.W. 6 could not even pay the rent in view of poverty. About 20 days prior to the occurrence the accused pledged to P.W. 13 about four household articles like Anda and borrowed Rs. 60 and further borrowings had to be made on pledge of other things for meeting the bare necessities. On the date of occurrence the husband gave Rs. 9 to the accused's son to give it to the carpenter or his brother and left the house for work at 7 -30 a.m. The said amount of Rs. 9 was given to the brother. At about 10 or 11 a.m. that day P.W. 1 was talking with one Krishna Asari in Shanmugha Nagar. At that time women were crying that a woman had fallen into the well. P.W. 1 immediately ran to the well, which is at a distance of 300 feet from the house of Krishna Acbari. Similarly P.W. 2, who was living in a house about 400 or 500 yards away from the house of the accused, heard the cry and he also rushed to the well. There were others i.e., P.Ws. 3 and 4, who heard the cry and all of them rushed to the well and P.W. 1 got into the well by holding the pipe inside the well and brought the accused to the surface of the water by holding her tuft and she was pulled out of the well. She was in an unconscious condition. She was taken to her house and placed in front of her house. The accused regained consciousness sometime later and when she was questioned as to why she fell into the well, she said that she had murdered her children by administering poison to them and that the children were inside her house. The house was broken open and they saw the five children of the accused lying dead inside the house near M.O. 4 tub. There was water in the tub to 3/4th of its height. Thereafter P.W. 11 went and informed her husband (P.W. 6) about the occurrence and P.W. 6 returned from his work and saw his children lying dead. P.W. 11 then informed the Village Munsif and made an oral report about the occurrence and it was reduced to writing. The report is Exhibit P -22. P.W. 16, the Village Munsif of Padagapatti went to the house of the accused and saw the dead bodies of the five children. The accused told P.W. 16 that she committed murder of the children by pressing their heads into the water tub. M.O. 4, and she also thereafter fell into the well in order to commit suicide. The Village Munsif then prepared the printed form reports and sent them to Annathanapatti Police Station and to the Sub -Magistrate No. 2, Salem. P.W. 17, the Sub -Inspector of Police, Annathanapatti, registered the case under Sections 302 and 309 of the Indian Penal Code. The Inspector (P.W. 19). Sakm Town, was duly intimated and immediately proceeded to the scene of occurrence, arrested the accused and sent her to the Government Hospital, Salem, for treatment. He held inquest between 7 p.m. and 12 midnight on that day (9th April, 1971). During the inquest he examined P.Ws. 1, 2 and 11 and others. He prepared the observation mahazar Exhibit P -25 attested by P.W. 16. He then sent the dead bodies of the children to the Government Hospital, Salem, for postmortem. Exhibit P -34 is the inquest report of Madesh; Exhibit P -35 is the inquest report of Pappathi; Exhibit P -36 is the inquest report of Maniammal; Exhibit P -37 is the inquest report of Devan and Exhibit P -38 is the inquest report of the female child, aged 1 1/2 years.

(3.) P.W. 10, the Civil Assistant Surgeon attached to the Government Hospital, Salem, conducted the post -mortem on the body of the male child Madesh at 11 -45 P.M. on 10th April, 1971. Exhibit P -21 is the final report of the Doctor to the effect that the deceased would appear to have died of asphyxia due to drowning.