D.V. KUMARAN Vs. NAGARAJ @ NAGARAJAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE brief facts of the case are as follows:- The defacto complainant / P.W.1 had lodged a complaint against the respondents herein / accused 1 to 5 stating that all the accused unlawfully assembled and attacked him and his father and as a result, his father was murdered.Hence, the respondent-Police had registered a criminal case in Crime No.80 of 2002, against the first and second accused for the offences under Sections 148, 324, 307 and 302 read with 149 IPC and Sections 147, 323, 307 and 302 read with 149 IPC against the third accused and Sections 148, 352, 307 r/w 149, 302 read with 149 IPC against the fourth accused and Sections 147, 302 and 307 read with 149 of IPC against the accused 5, 6 and 7. After investigation, the charge sheet has been filed. 27 witnesses had been listed and 35 documents were marked and 12 material objects were produced. The case has been referred to the District and Sessions Judge, Nagapattinam and the case has been taken on file as S.C.No.28 of 2004.

(2.) ALL the accused had pleaded not guilty after receiving charge sheet and hence, the Sessions case has been proceeded with before the trial Court. P.W.1-Kumanan had adduced evidence that he is residing at Perugavazhdan Lenin Street. He deposed that the deceased Durai Vaidhiyalingam who was his father, his mother Nagammal, brother Selvakumar Nanudaiyan and sister Shanthi were residing in the same village. P.W.1 further stated that he knew several of the accused who were involved in the murder case, viz., A-1-Nagaraj, A-2-Durairaj, A-3-Ashok Kumar, A-4-Vijayan, A-5-Chandran and late Nagendiran and the accused Mukkalagan, who had been split from the said proceedings. He deposed that on 29.07.2002, at around 09.30 a.m., when his brother Selvakumar was proceeding on a bicycle on the Madukkoor Road, the accused Nagendiran and one Shankar were standing on the middle of the road. When his brother Selvakumar questioned them as to why they were standing in the middle of the road, the accused Nagendran used abusive language and Shankar effected a compromise and sent him. Thereafter, the accused 1 and 2 came to his residence and shouted in front of his house. The very next day, i.e., 30.07.2002, at about 07.30 a.m., all the six accused came to his residence with aruval and shouted against them. At that time, the residents of the same street had requested the accused to avoid quarrelling and thereafter they left from his place. On the same day, his father made a complaint before the Perugavazhdan Police Station. After receipt of the said complaint by the Station Officer, the police personnel went to the place of the accused and asked them to appear before the police station for an enquiry on the said complaint, which they did not comply.

(3.) P .W.1 further adduced evidence that a car was arranged to take his father to the Mannargudi Government Hospital, wherein, the victim had been admitted for medical treatment. The head constable who is attached to the Perugavazhdan Police Station, had collected statements from him. For further medical treatment, he and his father had rushed to the medical college hospital, Thanjavur. The very next day, i.e, on 01.08.2002, at about 7.30 p.m,. his father breathed his last. The Inspector of Police had collected material objects from him, viz., coffee seed coloured lunghi, sandal wood coloured shirt and cream towel. P.W.1 had been cross examined by the counsel on the defence side and he further stated in his cross-examination that there was no previous enmity between the accused family and himself and the only quarrel was that while he was proceeding on his bicycle, Nagendran had developed a quarrel. He further admitted that the first and second accused are blood brothers. The first accused Nagaraj and the deceased Nagendiran were brothers and are the sons of the second accused. He deposed that the second and third accused are brothers and the fourth and fifth accused, who are the sons of the third accused are not related to other accused as well as Mukkalagan, who had been split from the said proceedings. P.W.1 further admits that all the above mentioned accused live in the same village. He further adduced evidence that the distance between the occurrence place and the police station is about 1 kilometer. He deposed that the Police personnel came to the occurrence place and sent him along with his father in a car and that his brother Muruganandham, Ravi @ Narayanaswamy accompanied them. P.W.1 further stated that the head constable had collected statements from him at the Government Hospital, Mannargudi. His brother Selvakumar, one Narayanaswamy, Muruganandham and Karunanithi had signed in the statement report as witnesses. He further stated that at the time of occurrence, a group of people assembled but his relatives were not present. All the relatives came to the Government Hospital, Thanjavur. P.W.1 further stated that when he was in a conscious state of mind at the Government Hospital, Mannargudi as well as at the Thanjavur Hospital, he informed the doctor that he was beaten with an iron road and one person gave him a blow with a knife. He had further informed that two persons had inflicted injuries on him with an aruval. Totally 7 of the accused attacked him, out of which, three of them had attacked him with aruval and the other four had attacked him with log woods. The head constable read over his statement to him and he agreed to the same. P.W.1 further stated that the first accused Nagendiran inflicted injuries on him with an aruval and the accused Nagarajan also inflicted injuries on him with an aruval and Ashok Kumar had attempted to assault him with an aruval and Mukkalagan, who had been split from the said proceedingshad attacked him twice with log wood and the accused Chandiran had attacked him with an iron rod on his hip. The accused Durairaj and Vijayan had both attacked him with wood log and as a consequence, P.W.1 had fallen down.This attack had lasted for a period of 10 minutes. He deposed that his father came to the occurrence place after 15 minutes and all the seven accused attacked his father until he fell down.