RAFEEQ Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE above Criminal Appeal has been preferred against the judgment dated 25. 9. 2001 rendered in S. C. No. 73 of 2001 by the Court of Additional Sessions Judge, Vellore, thereby convicting the appellant for the commission of offences under Sections 302 and 506 (ii) I. P. C and sentencing him to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 5,000/-, in default to undergo R. I for one year for the offence proved under Sec. 302 IPC and further to undergo sentence of one year R. I for the commission of the offence under section 506 (ii) I. P. C and further ordering both the above sentences to run concurrently.

(2.) THE case of the prosecution as projected before the trial Court was that the appellant/accused Rafeeq and P. W. 1 Aslam Basha's uncle's son Ali were friends; that the appellant was in Bangalore at the relevant point of time and he used to visit his sister Kurshied located at Ponniamman Koil Street in Thirupattur; that P. W. 1s sister Haseena-P. W. 6 is also residing in the same street; that while so, on 31. 10. 2000 when P. W. 1 went to see P. W. 6 at about 9. 30 p. m. , in Ponniamman Koil Street, near a bore well, he witnessed the scene of the appellant and the said Ali quarreling among themselves and when Ali asked the appellant as to why he was beating him, replying that he would do so and that he would not retire without killing him; that P. W. 1 and P. W. 6 having witnessed this scene, they intervened and compromised them, as a result of which the appellant and the said Ali went towards New Cinema Theatre in Tirupattur and P. W. 7 Murugan, owner of a Tea-stall, opposite to the said Theatre also saw both of them going towards Sarathy Lodge at 10. 45 p. m. on that day; that suspecting some foul play, P. W. 1 followed them while in the lane, near a Mechanic Shop, the appellant pushed the said Ali on the ground and picking up M. O. 1- stone from near by and assaulted him on his head shouting that he would finish him; that the said Ali having sustained grievous injuries particularly on the head died on the spot and the entire episode was witnessed by P. W. 1 and since the accused threatened him that he would also kill him if he leaked out the occurrence, frightened, he did not complain the same to anybody.

(3.) THE further case of the prosecution is that the next morning P. W. 1 hearing from others about the murder of Ali near the Mechanic shop, came there, when P. W. 2 Firoz, the brother of the deceased P. W. 5 Balikies, sister of the deceased and P. W. 3 Parveen, wife of the deceased were also present and he saw the dead body and M. O. 1 blood stained stone nearby and P. W. 1 told his uncle what had happened the previous night and on his advise, his uncle and himself went to Thirupathur Police Station, wherein P. W. 1 gave Ex. P. 1 complaint to P. W. 14 Kannan, Sub Inspector who registered the case and sent Ex. P. 13 Express F. I. R to the Court and copies to higher police officials through P. W. 11. Mohandoss Gr. I. Police Constable.