RAJESH MADHUKAR SRISUNDAR Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenge in this appeal is to judgement rendered by learned 4th Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge, Dhule, in Sessions Case No. 10 of 2004, whereby appellant is convicted for offence punishable under section 307 of the I.P. Code and sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for eight (8) years and to pay fine of Rs. 2000/-, in default to suffer rigorous imprisonment for six (6) months more.

(2.) Shorn of unessentials, the prosecution case is that the appellant and daughter of injured/complainant Smt. Imiliyana D suza fell in love and married. The daughter of the complainant resided with him at Mumbai for some period. The marriage was not successful. It was inter-caste marriage and the daughter of the complainant was being subjected to cruelty by the appellant in the matrimonial house. The complainant - Smt. Imiliyana had opposed their marriage. Still however, initially she did not resist when they had married somewhere in 1995. The spouses fell apart after 2-3 years. The wife of the appellant, namely, Karmel was residing at Dhule at the relevant time. She had received amount of Provident Fund. Out of that amount, she had purchased an auto-rickshaw for the appellant and certain amount was kept in Fixed Deposit. On 20th October, 2003, a female journalist by name Rajashree visited house of PW Karmel. She told her that she was sent by the appellant in order to inquire about ill-treatment meted out to her by the appellant. Thereupon, PW Karmel narrated her plight to the female journalist and also gave a written complaint against the appellant regarding ill-treatment given by him. She urged the female journalist to help her. She was rescued by the police from house of the appellant while he was in slumber under the state of intoxication. The police told her to stay with the journalist in that night.

(3.) The prosecution alleges that in the same night, at about wee hours around 3.15 a.m., complainant Imiliyana was lying on the cot in her house. She heard some noise coming from near window of the bedroom. She saw that the appellant was standing outside with an airgun pointed towards her. As she asked who was standing outside, the appellant pulled trigger of the airgun. A pellet sprang out from the airgun and hit forehead of the injured/complainant. She started shouting while proceeding towards the main entrance of the house. The entrance door was closed from inside. The appellant attempted to push the entrance door with help of the airgun. He broke a piece of glass fixed outside the entrance door and pushed the airgun inside. He pointed out the gun towards the complainant and started shouting that he would kill her. She declared that she had informed the police on mobile and the police would come to the house within a shortwhile. The appellant thereafter fled away. A tenant of the house went to call her brother and they shifted her to Civil Hospital, for medical treatment. She was lateron sent to J.J. Hospital, Mumbai. The pellet was removed after operating her forehead. The appellant was arrested and chargesheeted for offence punishable under section 307 of the I.P. Code.