NATHA KONDAJI NAWALE Vs. GOVIND RAMA NAWALE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY means of this appeal preferred from jail, the appellant has impugned the judgment and order dated 22-1-1985 passed by the Additional Sessions. Judge, Pune, in Sessions Case No. 183 of 1984, convicting and sentencing him to undergo imprisonment for life for the offence punishable under Section 302 I. P. C. It needs to be mentioned that one Janku Bhimaju Navale was also prosecuted and tried with the appellant but he was been acquitted vide the impugned judgment as the solitary circumstance against him was recovery of a blood stained shirt on his pointing out and the same did not inspire confidence. The State of Maharashtra has not impugned his acquittal; rightly so in our judgment.

(2.) IN short the prosecution case runs as under: The appellant the acquitted accused and the deceased Ramdas lived in village Utsal, within the limits of police station Junnar in District Pune. About 7 to 8 days prior to the incident the de ceased who was serving at Bombay had come on leave to village Utsal. On 9-4-1984 a Satyanarayan Puja was held at the house of the deceased who was to return to Bombay the following day. The same evening the appellant and the acquitted accused persuaded the deceased to consume liquor and brought, him to the house of Dulha Kashinath Borade. P. W. 3 situated near by a hamlet called Sonawalechi where Dulha Borade was running an illicit liquor den and all of them had liquor there. Thereafter the acquitted accused went to the house of Gramsevak Namdeo Girve, P. W. 2 for personal work. An altercation between him and Namdeo Girve ensued and he threatened to kill the latter in the manner in which he had just killed another person. It is said that the deceased did not return to his house that night and his corpse was found by the villagers next morning in the field of one Kama Shekhare with multiple injuries. One Prakash (not examined) thereupon went to village Shinderalegan to inform Govind, P. W. 1, the father of the deceased, who had gone to the said place in connection with agricultural operations. On receiving information Govind along with Prakash came to the field where the corpse of the deceased was lying.

(3.) ON 20-4-1984 at about 10 a. m. police Patil of village Utsal made a report, Exhibit 30 to the Junnar Police Station to the effect that a corpse was discovered lying in the village. On the basis of the said report accident death case No. 15/84 was registered at the police station. Thereafter the investigation was entrusted to PHC Damodar Hiru Gavari, P. W. No 9 who proceeded to the spot where the corpse was lying; prepared the inquest panchanama of the corpse, Exhibit 17; drew panchanama of the scene of offence Exhibit 18; and handed over the corpse for autopsy. He then made enquiry with the parents and wife of the deceased and recorded their statements. On 23rd April 1984 he received the advance certificate of the cause of death, Exhibit 31, from the Medical Officer. Primary Health Centre, Aptala, and from its perusal concluded that it was a case of murder. He accordingly lodged an F. I. R. on the basis of which C. R. No. 35/84 under Sections 302 and 201 I. P. C. was registered at Junnar Police Station.