MANOJ KUMAR PANDEY Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) JUDGMENT :- The present appellant stood convicted for an offence under Section 302, I.P.C. and had been sentenced to life imprisonment by an order of IVth Additional Sessions Judge, Saharanpur, dated 5-5-89 in Sessions Trial No. 144 of 1983. After presentation of the appeal the appellant was directed to be released on bail.

(2.) The appellant stood a charge for having killed his wife Usha Pandey in Room No. 17-A of Alka Hotel, Hardwar, in between 12 O'clock in the noon on 19-2-83 and 6.30 in the morning of 20-2-83. The prosecution case may be stated in brief as follows;

(3.) During investigation police could find a tailor mark on a shirt that was given for pressing which was of a tailor at Fatehpur. The tailor was traced out and on the identification of the tailor the present appellant was apprehended and the identity of the deadbody was established, from the photographs taken of the deadbody, as that of Usha Pandey the wife of the appellant and the photographs were identified by the relations of the deceased. Investigation revealed that Manoj and Usha had stayed for a night in a hotel in Lucknow and than proceeded to Hardwar where Manoj had allegedly given a fake name and fake address but the entries were made by him and these writings were compared with an undisputed writing of Manoj by an expert who had opined that the writings were by the same man. Manoj was also put on a test identification parade wherein the hotel staff had identified him as the man who had occupied room No. 17-A under the pseudonym S. K. Pandey.