RAJU Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Raju, alias, Rajesh has filed this appeal against his conviction under Section 302 Indian Penal Code and sentence of life imprisonment recorded by Sri Suresh Chand, District and Sessions Judge, Aligarh by his judgment and order dated 24.4;1176. The deceased Smt. Vaid Mati was younger sister of the father of Rajesh appellant and was residing in her house situated about four furlongs from Police Station Kotwali Hathras. Her house was situated to the east of National High Way running between Aligarh and Hathras town. Towards the north and west of the houseof deceased Smt. Vaid Mati is the house of Sri Purvendra Gupta First Informant P.W. 2 which was being, constructed under the supervision of P.W. 3 Smt. Shanti Devi, his sister-in-law at the time of occurrence. The First Information Purvendra Gupta P.W. 2 was residing in his house situated in Mohalla Gali Sadabadian which lay at a distance of about six furlongs from the house of Smt. Ved Mati deceased. The western portion of the newly constructed house of P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta also opens into the Sahan of Smt. Ved Mati. It is also said that adjacent to the house of P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta, there are shops of various persons towards the western side. To the south of the house of Smt. Ved Mati deceased, is the house and open land of P.W. 3 Shanti Devi who is the sister-in, law of P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta. The deceased Smt. Ved Mati used to live all alone inside her house as she was issueless and there was separation between her and her husband long before. The appellant's father was the elder brother of Smt. Ved Mati and he used to reside in Calcutta. The appellant was unemployed and about a year before the murder, Smt. Ved Mati in order to held him and given some money to the appellant who had opened a cloth shop in the Town of Hathras but the business failed and the appellant returned back to Calcutta to live with his father. The prosecution case in brief is that at about 6 p.m. on 9th July, 1975, the deceased Soot. Ved Mati was sitting in her Sahan when the appellant arrived there. At that time P.W.3 Soot. Santi Devi was also there arid she was busy in talking with Soot. Ved Mati. Soot. Ved Mati prepared tea for the appellant and also gave him something to eat on his arrival and also talked for sometime. Soot. Ved Mati, then, started to prepare food in the Sahan. P.W.3 Soot. Shanti Devi continued to remain there while talking to the appellant and it is said that at about 8 a.m. the appellant asked for a sum of Rs. 100 from Soot. Ved Mati saying that he needed money for his backward journey to Calcutta but Soot. Ved Mati declined to give him any money as she had no money with her. She also politely rebuked him by saying that she had also given him money in the past. The accused lost his temper on the refusal of his aunt for giving him money and assaulted Soot. Ved Mati with a knife which he took out from the pocket of his pant. Both the deceased Soot. Ved Mati and Soot. Shanti Devi cried out for help but in the mean time the appellant inflicted five incised wounds on the person of Soot. Ved Mati and he also caused one knife injury to Soot. Shanti Devi when she tried to save Soot. Ved Mati. After causing injuries to Smt. Ved Mati deceased and Soot. Shanti Devi, the appellant tried to run a way towards the east but before he could run away, P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta P.W. 5 Karam Singh P.W. 6 Pokh Pal and r. W. 7 Raj Kishore reached there and chased the appellant but the appellant made good his escape by jumping over the boundary wall which was to the east of the house. However, P.W. 5 Karam Singh could catch hold of the Bush- shirt of the appellant which got torn but the appellant managed to run away and after crossing the boundary wall, the appellant also threw the blood stained knife at a short distance from the boundary wall. The witnesses after chasing the appellant returned back to Soot. Ved Mati and found her in a critical condition. She asked for water to drink and Soot. Shanti Devi P.W. 2 bandaged her wounds with a cloth and then she was taken to the Hospital on a rickshaw but she succumbed to her injuries on reaching the hospital After her death at the hospital, P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta brought back the dead body to the house of the deceased and he kept the dead body in the Sahan. P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta prepared of the occurrence and left for the Police Station and lodged his report Ex. Ka. 3 there at 9.30 p.m. On the basis of the aforesaid report, P.W. 9 Gajraj Singh prepared the Chik report, copy of which is Ex. Ka-15 and he also registered a case in the General Diary, a copy of the same is Ex. Ka. 16.

(2.) P.W. 8 Pooran Chand, S.J.P.S. Kotwali Hathras took up the investigation of the case. The aforesaid case was registered in his presence at the police station. He accompanied the First Informant Purvendra Gupta to the house of Soot. Ved Mati deceased and reached there at about 10 p.m. He took down the statement of P.W. 2 Purvendra Gupta and prepared inquest report, copy of the same is Ex. Ea. 4 and sent the dead body of the deceased to the Mortuary Aligarh for postmortem examination through constables P.W. 4 Ramesh Chandra and Shamsad. With the help of the witnesses, he inspected the place of occurrence and prepared site plan Ex. Ea. 8. He also took in his possession the blood stained strings of the cot on which the dead body of Soot. Ved Mati was said to be kept after she has fallen on the ground on receiving the injuries. He also took the blood stained Dhoti of Soot. Ved Mati in his possession and sealed in there. The pillow on the cot was also found blood stained and part of it was also taken in possession and was sealed. In the Saban of the house at the place of occurrence, he also found blood stains and he took simple and blood stained earth and sealed separately. The torn bush-shirt of the appellant was also given to the Investigating Officer and he prepared memo and the bush-shirt is material Ex. I. He also found blood stained knife Ex. 2 in front of the gate of the deceased Soot. Ved Mati at a distance of about four paces from the place of . the occurrence and prepared the memo Ex. ka. 13.

(3.) P.W.8 Pooran Chand, then recorded the statements of P.W. 3 Smt. Shanti Devi, P.W. 5 Karam Singh GyaDi, P.W. 6 Pokh Pal and P.W. 7 Raj Kishore after 1 a.m. on 10.7.1975. He also searched for the appellant but he was not found. Ultimately, the appellant Rajesh was arrested on 11. 8. 1975.