CHELLIAH ALIAS MARIAPPA KUDUMBAN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE accused, a be y past 16, has been convicted under Section 302, Penal Code, by the Sessions Judge of Ramnad, and sentenced to transportation for life with the recommendation for action under B. 10a, be cstal Schools Act.

(2.) THE facts are simple. The accused and the deceased a neighbouring be y of 12, were friends, though, like boys of that age, they were also now and then quarrelling. On 26th March 1948, the accused called the deceased to go with him to collect some babul beans which he bad taken on lease for a rupee. The two boys went together, the accused taking with him athorothi stick (a stick with a small iron bill hook at the end) for plucking the beans. They were seen together gaily chatting and laughing and proceeding to--warjjs the babul tree by P. \v. 7, the accused's Stepmother. That night, the deceased did not return home, so his relatives went about enquiring for him. Finally, the accused was questioned. At first he said that the deceased had gone to a cinema, circus, etc. Later on, he said that the deceased had climbed up a palmyrah tree to gather palmyra fruits and had fallen down and died. Still later, when questioned sternly by the assembled villagers, be confessed, in the presence of p. We. 4, 5, 9,10 and 12 and others, that he and the deceaeed went together and gathered babul beans from the tree leased out by him, and that he divided the collected beans into three equal shares, and offered one share to the deceased, taking two for himself, one by virtue of his lease and one by virtue of his aiding in gathering the beans. The deceased, however, insisted that he should receive a full half share. The accused would not agree. Thereupon, the deceased, in a huff, scattered the beans, saying that he did not want any. Then the accused gave him a slap on ' the cheek for refusing the one-third offered to him. The deceased then threw a stone at the accused, and the accused hit him with the thoratti stick (m. O-l) and the deceased died of that one blow; being afraid of the consequences, the accused said that he threw the dead body of the deceased into an adjoining well, He showed the assembled villagers the corpse of the deceased in that well; that was the first time that anybody knew that the deceased's corpse was in that well. The clothes of the accused were also seized, and they were found stained with human blood. The prosecution suggestion is that the blood was that of the deceased.

(3.) THE learned Counsel for the appellant urged that the offence had nut been brought home to the accused and especially the fatal blow covered by injury no, 8 which, even according to the doctor (p. w. l) could have been caused by a fall. We too are of the opinion that though the quarrel is proved and the infliction of some of the injuries on the deceased, including the grievous injury on the jaw, is proved to have been caused by the accused, there is to satisfactory proof that the fatal injury (injury No. 8 on the deceased was dealt by the accused, and that it might very well be that the deceased ran away after receiving some injuries and fell down and sustained injury No. 8 and died. In these circumstances, we set aside the conviction of the accused under Section 302, Penal Code and substitute for it a conviction under Section 326 of the Code.