DURAI ALIAS LOGANATHAN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant is the sole accused in Sessions Case No. 284 of 2006 on the file of learned Principal and District Sessions Judge, Vellore District. He questions the correctness of the judgment dated 13. 4. 2007 rendered in the above stated sessions case, whereunder the appellant was convicted for the offence punishable under section 302 I. P. C. and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life.

(2.) THE allegation in the charge framed against the appellant is that on 24. 06. 2006 at 2. 00 p. m. in his house at Mangattucheri village, the accused, with an intention to commit the murder of his wife Kanaga, forcibly cut her neck with an aruval, and the said Kanaga died on the spot and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 302 I. P. C.

(3.) THE case of the prosecution, as discerned from the evidence of prosecution witnesses, is as follows. 5. 2. THE deceased Kanaga is the wife of the appellant/accused. P. W. 4 Anjali and P. W. 6 Ammu are the daughters-in-law of the deceased and the accused. THE deceased, appellant, P. Ws. 4 and 6 are residing under one roof at Mangattucheri village. On 24. 6. 2006 at about 1. 00 p. m. , the deceased, P. Ws. 4 and 6, returned home after their cooli work. After taking lunch, P. Ws. 4 and 6 were sitting on pial and talking with each other and the deceased was sleeping inside the house. At that time, the accused came with an aruval after grassing the cattle and went inside the house with aruval. Within a short span of time, he came out of the house carrying decapitated head of the deceased on one hand and the aruval on the other hand. He kept the decapitated head and the aruval at the entrance of the house and went out of the house. After hearing the hue and cry of P. Ws. 4 and 6, crowd gathered there. THEy went inside and saw the torso. 5. 3. While P. W. 1, Nagapooshnam, Village Administrative Officer, Mangattucheri Village along with his menial Bharathi was returning to office after completing tax collection, the accused rushed to P. W. 1 and confessed that he murdered his wife and is fearing to go to the police station. P. W. 3, Arumugam and Venkatesan, residents of the same village, witnessed the confession made by the accused to P. W. 1. THEreafter, P. W. 1 took the accused and his menial in his motorcycle and went to Thakkolam Police Station and lodged Ex. P. 1 complaint. 5. 4. P. W. 12, the Sub Inspector of Police, Thakkolam Police Station, based on Ex. P1 complaint, registered a case in Crime No. 206 of 2006 for the offence punishable under Section 302 I. P. C. on 24. 6. 2006 at 3. 00 p. m. and prepared Ex. P19 FIR and sent the same to the Court as well as to the higher officials through P. W. 11, Head Constable. 5. 5. P. W. 13, the Inspector of Police, on receipt of information from P. W. 12, went to the police station at 3. 15 p. m. and took up the case for investigation. He examined the accused in the presence of P. W. 1 and his menial and recorded a confession statement. Pursuant to the confession statement, P. W. 13 recovered M. O. 6 bloodstained dhoti and M. O. 7 bloodstained towel worn by the accused in the presence of P. W. 1 and his menial and lodged the accused to police custody. THEreafter, he reached the scene of occurrence at 4. 45 p. m. on the same day and prepared Ex. P9, observation mahazar and Ex. P20, rough sketch in the presence of P. W. 8 Rajendran and Raman and caused the place of occurrence to be photographed through P. W. 9 Photographer. Exs. P13 series are the photographs and negatives. THEreafter, P. W. 13 recovered M. Os. 2 to 5, viz. , bloodstained cement mortar and sample cement mortar in the presence of P. W. 8 and Raman under Ex. P11 mahazar. He conducted inquest over the decapitated torso and head separately and prepared inquest reports Exs. P21 and P22 respectively. He also conducted inquest over the whole body and prepared Ex. P23 inquest report and thereafter sent the body for post-mortem with Ex. P2 requisition through Head Constable Thiru Sampath. During the inquest, he examined P. Ws. 1, 3, 4, 6 and 8 and other witnesses and recorded their statements. He also recovered M. O. 1, aruval, under Ex. P12 mahazar in the presence of P. W. 8 and Raman. He remanded the accused to judicial custody on 25. 6. 2006. He also forwarded the material objects to the Court for sending the same for chemical examination under Ex. P14. 5. 6. P. W. 2 is the Doctor who conducted post-mortem over the body of the deceased and noticed the following injuries: