MURALI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant is the sole accused in S.C.No.78 of 2011 on the file of the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Chengalpattu. He stood charged for offence under Section 302 of IPC. The trial court, by judgement dated 09.04.2013, convicted the appellant under Section 302 of IPC and sentenced him to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/ - in default to suffer simple imprisonment for a further period of six months. Challenging the above said conviction and sentence, the sole accused has come up with the present criminal appeal.

(2.) The case of the prosecution in brief is as follows: - The deceased in this case was one Mrs.Suganya. The accused is her husband. The marriage between them was solemnized two years before the occurrence. Though initially the marital life was smooth, in due course of time, the accused developed suspicion over the fidelity of the deceased. On account of the same, it is alleged that on 13.03.2011, when the deceased was cooking just in front of the house of her mother [P.W.6], the accused came there and cut her indiscriminately on her neck, head, hands and other parts of the body. The deceased fell down in a pool of blood. The accused ran away from the scene of occurrence. The occurrence was witnessed by P.W.1, the father and P.W.6, the mother of the deceased, P.Ws.2 to 5 and 7 to 9 who are neighbours. P.Ws.1 and 6 immediately took the deceased in ambulance to the Government Medical College Hospital at Chengalpattu where P.W.14 -Dr.Ravi, examined her at 09.10 a.m. He was informed by one Sri.Kotteeswaran that the deceased was attacked by a known person with a knife. When he examined the deceased, he found that the deceased was already dead. He made entry of the same in the accident register [Ex.P.10] and kept the body of the deceased in the mortuary. He gave intimation to the police in this regard.

(3.) In the mean time, P.W.1, from the hospital went to Palur Police Station and made a complaint [Ex.P1] at 10.30 a.m. on 13.02.2011. P.W.17, the then Sub Inspector of Police, on receipt of the said complaint, registered a case in crime No.37 of 2011 under Section 302 of IPC. Ex.P.1 is the complaint and Ex.P.15 is the FIR. He forwarded both the complaint -Ex.P1 and the FIR -Ex.P.15 to the court which were received by the learned Judicial Magistrate at 01.00 p.m. on 13.02.2011. In the mean time, P.W.17, handed over the case diary to the Inspector of Police for investigation.