GOVINDARAJ Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) "Man, when perfected, is best of animals, but when separated from the law and justice, he is worst of all - said Plato, an Athenian Philosopher The Appellant herein, who is the Sole Accused in S.C.No.48 of 2011 on the file of the learned Sessions Judge, Fast Track Mahila Court, Theni, stands convicted by the Trial Court for an offence under Sec. 302 IPC as follows:

(2.) The brief case of the prosecution is that the appellant / accused and the deceased are husband and wife, whose marriage was solemnized on 25/5/2009 and out of their marriage, they were blessed with a female child. It was alleged that on 20/7/2010 at about 05.30 p.m., when the accused was in his house, his wife / deceased insisted upon him to redeem her pledged jewels and annoyed by her repeated insistence, the accused had attacked on the left backside of the deceased with stick and thereafter, poured kerosene on the deceased. Immediately, the deceased was taken to the hospital, wherein she succumbed to death due to sustenance of severe injury. Though a case was initially registered for an offence under Sec. 307 IPC on the basis of the complaint given by the deceased herself before her death to P.W.14 (Special Sub Inspector of Police, Bodi, after the demise of the deceased, the case was altered into the one punishable under Sec. 302 IPC by way of an alteration report dtd. 27/7/2010.

(3.) After investigation, a charge sheet was laid before the District Munsifcum-Judicial Magistrate, Bodinayakanur in P.R.C.No.41 of 2010 and was subsequently, made over to the Court of Sessions as per Sec. 209 Cr.P.C. for trial after furnishing requisite documents to the accused in terms of Sec. 207 Cr.P.C. The prosecution, in order to substantiate the offence against the appellant / accused, has examined 20 witnesses, marked 16 documents and exhibited 7 Material Objects and on the side of the accused, neither any witness was examined nor documents marked. The accused was questioned under Sec. 313 Cr.P.C. and he denied the charges levelled against him. The Trial Court, after analyzing the evidence let in by the prosecution, found the accused guilty of the offence and convicted him as stated supra.