KISAN BHIMAJI JAGADALE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant aggrieved by the Judgment and order dated 10th February 1983 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Satara in Sessions Case No.78 of 1982 convicting and sentencing him to under go imprisonment for life under Section 302 IPC and to two years RI under Section 436 IPC, the sentences to run concurrently, has come up in appeal before us.

(2.) BRIEFLY stated the prosecution case runs as under :- The deceased Ratnabai was the wife of the appellant. She along with the appellant, her daughter aged about 3 months, another daughter aged about 12 years and her son Sachin, at the time of the incident was residing in a farm house at Kolan. It is said that the appellant was having illicit relationship with one Shantabai who lived in the same locality and desperately wanted to marry her. Hence according to the prosecution he murdered Ratnabai. On 28-2-1982 the appellant hired one cycle at Wai from the shop of Ashok Shiddu Kudalkar P. W.4.On the said cycle at about 12.30 in the noon he came to his hut. At that time the deceased was there. He parked the cycle outside the hut and thereafter distributed Jilebies to his children Jayashri and Sachin. At that time Ratnabai was cooking food inside the hut. It is also alleged that he offerred Jilebies to her but she refused. Thereafter it is said that the appellant assaulted Ratnabai with a very heavy sharp cutting instrument (sickle) and amputed her right leg above the ankle and right arm above the wrist. It is also said that the appellant assaulted Ratnabai on her abdomen. Thereafter he set fire to the hut but brought out his minor baby aged four months from inside it. It is also said that Ratnabai screamed ' Aai ga mele ' (Oh mother, I am dead ). Upon hearing the shrieks of Ratnabai the neighbours including P. W. 6 Subhadra, P. W. 7 Mangala and P. W. 11 Tanubai came. They noticed that Ratnabai was completely burnt.

(3.) PURSUANT to the directions of PSI Dinkar Bhosale, Constable Waman Sakate went to the scene of the incident, prepared the panchanama of the place of the incident and sent corpse for autopsy. When he received the autopsy report and discovered that the deceased had sustained injuries other than burns, he lodged a complaint of murder on 1-3-82. The complaint is Exhibit 13. The said complaint was recorded by PSI Patil and on its basis CR No.24/82 was registered.