SMT. KALUTIA Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Appellant, Smt. Kalutia, has preferred this appeal against her conviction and sentence of life imprisonment under Sec. 302, Indian Penal Code from jail. This Court appointed learned Advocate Sri A.N. Mulla as amicus curiae for her.

(2.) Deceased Suraj Pal was the husband of the appellant. They had been living together in their house in village Bamura within police station Mau in district Banda. The incident had taken place at about 9.00 P.M. on 13.7.1975 and it was reported at the police station by Kuber Singh who lived in the house adjoining the house of the deceased on its northern side. The first information report was drafted by informant, Kuber Singh (P.W.1), and he had handed over the same at 2.00 A.M. on 14.7.1975 i.e. in the same night. The distance between village Bamura and P.S. Mau was about 3 miles. It has been mentioned in the first information report. Ex. Ka-11, that it had been raining very heavily due to which the report could not he lodged before 2.00 A.M. The investigation of the case was done by Sri Ram Bahadur Singh Bhadaur (P.W.5) who was posted as Station Officer at Police Station Mau. He completed the necessary formalities, sent the dead body of Suraj Pal for post-mortem examination and the property of the case to the Chemical Examiner and Serologist for detection of human blood, if any upon the different articles and in case the blood was found, for the classification of the blood group upon them. He had examined the torches of the prosecution witnesses. He had taken into custody the appellant from her house. After the completion of the investigation, she was charge-sheeted for having murdered her husband. It may be mentioned that the investigation had commenced at 6.00 A.M. on 15.7.1975. The Investigating Officer had received the information of this incident at Allahabad on 14.7.1975. Due to other important work, he had not been able to reach village Bamura on 14.7.1975.

(3.) According to the prosecution, the deceased who was aged about 25 years had developed illicit sex relations with another woman who was wife of Kamta and used to beat her whenever she protested against his illicit sex relations. She, therefore, had committed her husband's murder with the help of a Gandasa. It may be mentioned that the incident was not witnessed by any one. According to the version given in the first information report, informant, Kuber Singh, was taking food in his house when at about 9.00 P.M. he heard cries of Bhamma Gaderia from the house of Suraj Pal. He also heard some sounds of Suraj Pal, described as 'Gangane Ki Avaaj'. Suraj Pal was dauthter's son of Bhamma who was, at the time of the incident, sleeping in the room (in the Barot shown by letter 'B' in the site plan, Ex. Ka-10. Suraj Pal himself was lying upon a cot in the eastern room at the place shown by letter 'C'. Kuber Singh, the informant, rushed towards the house of the deceased. Deshraj Kewat and Ram Pd. daderia, too were neighbours of the deceased, also reached there flashing light from their torches. On entering the house they found that Suraj Pal was lying upon the cot and there were injuries in his neck from which blood was flowing. His wife, appellant, Kilutia, was trying to conceal a Gandasa in cow-dung cakes which had been stored in the same room. The witnesses enquired from the appellant about the incident. She first told them that the Gandasa which had been kept upon a Dat had fallen as a result of which Suraj Pal had received injuries. The witnesses, however, did not feel convinced and told her that Suraj Pal could not have received injuries as a result of the fall of the Gandasa. The appellant, then, told them that her husband had developed illicit sex relations with the wife of Kamta and he used to beat her whenever she protested due to which she had murdered him with the Gandasa. The events which followed thereafter, have already been mentioned above.