KANU SHANKAR KHARVI Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant, who stands convicted for an offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.2000/ -, in default of which to undergo further RI for two months, by the Additional Sessions Judge, Brihan Mumbai, by judgment dated 05/11/2004, in Sessions Case No. 254 of 2004, by this appeal questions the correctness of his conviction and sentence.

(2.) FACTS in brief as are necessary for the decision of this appeal may briefly be stated thus: - PW 6 - PSI Sadashiv Pawar, who, on 30/12/2003, was attached to Kasturba Police Station, was informed about receipt of message from the Bhagwati Hospital about admission of injured Rajashree, wife of the appellant, in the hospital. The information further conveyed that Rajashree was declared dead on admission. Accordingly, a note was taken in the station diary and PW 6 - PSI Pawar proceeded to the Bhagwati Hospital. In the presence of panchas, he drew the inquest panchanama of the dead body of deceased Rajashree at Exh. 8. The report of PW 1 - Santosh, brother of deceased Rajashree, was recorded at Exh. 16. On the basis of the report at Exh. 16, an offence vide Crime No. 266 of 2004 was registered under Section 302 of the IPC. PW 6 - PSI Pawar thereafter visited the scene of the incident and in the presence of panchas drew the spot panchanama at Exh. 9. From the scene of the incident, he seized samples of blood stains, the blood stained pestle and the grinding stone. He also collected samples of blood stains and samples of blood mixed mud. The appellant was arrested in the presence of panchas under an arrest panchanama at Exh. 10. The clothes on the person of the appellant were also seized. PW 7 - PSI Jadhav, who was also attached to the Kasturba Police Station, recorded the statements of witnesses and seized the clothes of PW 1 - Santosh under seizure memo at Exh. 11. The seized articles were thereafter referred to the Chemical Analyzer under requisition at Exh. 12. The reports of the Chemical Analyzer are at Exhs. 13 and 14. Further to the completion of investigation, he submitted a charge -sheet against the appellant. Postmortem on the dead body of deceased Rajashree was conducted by PW 5 - Dr. Baban Shinde. PW 5 - Dr. Shinde noticed the following external injuries :

(3.) PW 3 - Arun Vaidya, a neighbour of the appellant, states that on the day of the incident i.e. 31/12/2003, in the morning, he had heard the shouts from the house of the appellant. Residents of the locality had gathered in front of the house of the appellant and they were called upon the appellant to open the door. On opening the door, PW 3 - Arun Vaiday claims to have seen a woman lying in the house in a pool of blood and had also noticed the appellant sitting on a cot. Arun Vaidya had also noticed a small boy crying, saying that his father had assaulted his mother. That boy started to go to the house of his maternal uncle and, therefore, PW 3 - Arun Vaidya accompanied that small boy to the house of his maternal uncle. In cross -examination, he was confronted with portions marked "A" and "B". He has admitted that he had not spoken to the maternal uncle of the small boy.