(1.) Sole-accused in Sessions Case No.102 of 2010 on the file of the Court of the XI Additional District and Sessions Judge (Fast Track Court), Kakinada, East Godavari District, is the appellant in the present Criminal Appeal, preferred under sub- section (2) of Section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to, as 'Cr.P.C.'). In the present Criminal Appeal, appellant herein assails the judgment dated 29.12.2011, rendered by the learned Sessions Judge in the said Sessions Case. By way of the impugned judgment, the learned Sessions Judge convicted the accused-appellant herein for the offences alleged under Sections 302 and 392 I.P.C. and sentenced him with life imprisonment for the offence under Section 302 I.P.C. and with rigorous imprisonment for a period of ten years for the offence under Section 392 I.P.C.
(2.) The case of the prosecution, in nutshell, is as follows:
(3.) In order to substantiate its case, the prosecution examined P.Ws.1 to 21 and marked Exs.P.1 to P.12 and Exs.D.1 and D.2, apart from M.Os.1 to 18 and no witnesses were examined on behalf of the accused nor any documents were marked. Subsequent to the closure of the evidence of prosecution witnesses, the accused-appellant herein was examined under Section 313 Cr.P.C. and the accused denied the commission of offence.