SHRAWAN Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is preferred by the original accused Nos. 1 and 2, who were tried alongwith a third accused for an offence punishable under Section 302 read with Sections 147, 148 and 149 of Indian Penal Code. The third accused was acquitted by the trial Court. The present two appellants were convicted and they were sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life with a fine of Rs. 1.000/ - by each and in default a further sentence of imprisonment for six months by each one of the appellants.

(2.) IN this appeal, the learned Advocate appearing for the appellants confined his submission to only one point. According to him excepting the evidence of the eye witness P.W. 1 Damodhar and the medical evidence concerning the certification of the injuries and the post -mortem report, he submitted that the circumstances were clearly suggestive of the fact that though the appellants may have the knowledge of the injuries sustained by the deceased were likely to cause his death, still the evidence on record was suggestive of the fact that an intention to kill must not have been harboured by any of them. He, therefore, confined his submission only to the scrutiny of evidence of P.W. 1 Damodhar and the evidence of the medical witness who examined the injuries and performed the post -mortem examination on the dead body of the deceased. The circumstances which were pointed out as available from the evidence of P.W. 1 Damodhar and P.W. 10 Vatsalabai the very wife of the deceased were that ultimately the quarrel between appellant No.1 and the deceased was referable to the subject of appellant No.2 teasing or insultingly abusing the wife of the deceased. This was an instance referable to some years prior to the incident i.e. about four years. It was further pointed out that one more factor prevailed namely that on account of "Kala" celebration in the village there was again an altercation on this subject between accused No.1 Shrawan and the deceased. It was then pointed out that the appellant No.2 Dashrath was required on account of this to leave the village Satefal. The abusing or teasing was referred to appellant No. -2 Dashrath, Appellant No.1 Shrawan seems to be his social associate. On this background, the incident was alleged to have taken place. When the learned Advocate Shri Daga points out that the deceased was riding a cycle and by a road leading from Hinganghat to Satefal, the incident had taken place near the nullah, the deceased had already entrusted a cart -man to carry the wheat bags purchased by him. On way, he was round about by the cart sometimes behind and sometimes ahead of it. When on the one side was the cart driven by the cart -man P.W. 1 Damodhar the deceased was on the other side of the nullah with the cycle when he was surrounded by the two appellants, acquitted accused Tukaram and two unknown persons armed with sticks. They assaulted him with the sticks. Totally there were three injuries sustained by the deceased, one on the nose other on the temporal region and the third on the leg. The injury on the temporal region turned out to be a laceration from outside and internally causing a crack to the skull and consequential haemorrhage near the outer cover of the brain. The cause of injury certified by the doctor was neurogenic shock together with the fracture to the nasal bone and skull were mentioned as internal damages in relation to the injuries on the side of the head and also on the nose. It is on this background, what was pointed out from the evidence of Damodhar and Vatsalabai that the appellants had made no effort to cause any harm to the witness Damodhar, though they had in some challenging language spoken to him but had allowed Damodhar to run away from the spot leaving the cart and bullocks there only. Damodhar went to the village and informed the event to the wife of the deceased. The wife of the deceased also did not suspect anything of the nature so as to immediately rush to the spot. She went near the spot on the next day when she found her husband had not returned home hence she went to the spot and found him dead there. The miscreants had come across the passersby and then they had showed a conduct of the type that besides assaulting, to teach him, they must not have done, anything serious even though there was exchange of tobacco which they chewed, and by act of omission nothing was disclosed on the part of P.W. 1 Damodhar to indicate that the appellants and any of the other miscreants had a sure intention to kill the deceased. It was, therefore, finally submitted that the very happening, namely teasing and abusing which was the origin for this trouble was itself not acceptable of creating in the minds of the miscreants any intention to kill the deceased and their conduct, as described by P.W. 1 Damodhar on the spot was further indicative of the fact that even the miscreants could not be described to be surely harbouring an intention to kill when they beat the deceased allowed Damodhar to safely go away that they further casually lingered at the spot even informed passers by, chewed tobacco with them and then went away therefrom.

(3.) ON behalf of the State, it was urged that since the injuries were sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death the learned trial Judge was justified in punishing the appellants under Section 302 read with Sections 147, 148 and 149 of Indian Penal Code. However, on the subject of the circumstances which were available from the medical evidence as well as the evidence of P.W. 1 Damodhar and P.W. 10 Vatsalabai, the learned A.P.P. had obviously to confine the submission to what state of evidence on the record is.