YOGESH DAMODHAR SONABAWANE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Sessions Trial Nos. 570/02 and 193/03 came to be clubbed and tried by the 1st Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge, Nagpur who by his judgment and order dated 15-1-2005 found the original accused Nos. 2 and 3 not guilty of the charges and acquitted them of the offences under sections 307, 302 read with sections 34 and 109 of Indian Penal Code, whereas convicted the original accused No. 1, i. e. Yogesh s/o Damodhar Sonbawane of the offence under section 307 of Indian Penal Code and sentenced him to suffer R. I. for 3 years and to pay a fine of Rs. 500/- and in default, to suffer R. I. for 15 days. He was also found guilty and convicted of the offence punishable under section 302 of Indian Penal Code and was sentenced to suffer imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 500/- and in default of payment of fine to suffer R. I. for 15 days. These substantive sentences were ordered to run concurrently. The judgment of conviction and sentence is challenged by the original accused No. 1 Yogesh s/o damodhar Sonbwane in this appeal whereas the State has not preferred any appeal against the acquittal of original accused Nos. 2 and 3 who came to be acquitted by the trial Court.

(2.) In nutshell, it is the prosecution's case that the original accused persons on 31-7-2002 at about 5. 45 P. M. at village Sillewada in furtherance of their common intention caused hurt to Manohar Bagade by means of Gupti and scissor with such intention and knowledge and under such circumstances that if by that act they had caused the death of Manohar Bagade, then they would have been guilty of murder and secondly, in furtherance of their common intention they committed murder by intentionally causing the death of Zingraji Bagade and also abetted the commission of these offences.

(3.) The incident took place as an outcome of a quarrel which had taken place two days ago between the two families on the pretext that a stone came to be thrown in the courtyard in the house of original accused No. 2 Damu Sonbawane because of which the family of Damodhar Sonbawane and complainant abused each other. The quarrel continued between the two families who were hurling abuses at each other and on the day of the incident when the complainant PW. 1 manohar Zingraji Bagade was returning home after fishing in Kanhan river, he was informed by his brother Dilip PW. 11 that the quarrel between the two families was going on. PW. l Manohar on reaching home saw that the quarrel had ended but on seeing him the original accused No. 1 Yogesh instigated his father; i. e. Damu that they will beat the complainant because of which the complainant went to his home and brought a stick and proceeded towards the house of Damu. At this moment, Yogesh stood in front of his house armed with a Gupti (sword-stick) and assaulted PW. 1 Manohar who claims to have obstructed the blow which caused injury to his right hand. Damu also came out armed with scissor in his hand and gave blow to PW. 1 Manohar with the scissor causing him injury on his right shoulder. On this, PW. l Manohar tried to escape followed by accused yogesh and Damu. It is at this stage that the deceased Zingraji Bagade intervened in the quarrel to save his son PW. 1 Manohar whereupon Yogesh delivered a blow of Gupti on the chest of Zingraji as a result of which he fell under Peepal tree and the accused persons ran away from the place. Thereafter the wife of original accused No. 3 rushed at the scene of occurrence with stick in her hand shouting to beat them and having noticed that Zingraji was lying on the ground she also ran away from the place. People gathered at the scene of occurrence. The injured zingraji was then taken by PW. l complainant to Walni chowki in auto-rickshaw and from Walni chowki (police outpost) the injured was taken to hospital at walni where the doctor declared him dead. A report came to be lodged by PW. 10 manohar on the basis of which Police Station Khaparkheda registered FIR No. 75 dated 31-7-2002 under sections 307, 302 read with sections 109, 34 of Indian penal Code against the accused persons. PW. 15 PSO Rajesh Dudhalwar then went to Walni hospital and prepared the inquest panchnama (Exh. 31). He recorded statement of wife of the deceased, i. e. PW. 10 Laxmibai. Then he went to the Police Station and registered the offence on the basis of the report. According to PW. 15 PSO Dudhalwar, accused persons were absconding. On 1-8-2002 he went to the spot and prepared the spot panchnama (Exh. 40). He arrested accused Damodhar on 1-8-2002 and also seized the clothes of the deceased. On 3-8-2002 he sent PW. 1 Manohar Bagade for medical examination and further investigation in the case was handed over to PSI Devidas Gondode. PW. 12 PSI gondode in the course of investigation at the instance of accused Damu, discovered and seized article 7 stick and scissor article 8 in the presence of panchas vide seizure-memo Exh. 36. He arrested accused Yogesh on 3-8-2002. At his instance, he discovered and seized article 4 knife, also seized the clothes of the accused persons and recorded statements of witnesses acquainted with the case. He sent the accused persons to the hospital for drawing their blood samples. Till the conclusion of the investigation of the case, the accused No. 3 Suman was not arrested as she was not found and, therefore, he filed charge-sheet against original accused Yogesh and Damu. Subsequently accused Suman also came to be arrested and separate charge-sheet came to be filed against her and that is how it culminated in two Sessions Trials which were clubbed together and tried by the learned trial Court.