PUSAM NAGA RAJU Vs. STATE OF A P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This criminal appeal is directed against the judgment dated 16.10.2007, passed by the Principal Sessions Judge, Khammam, in S.C. No. 13 of 2006, convicting the appellant-accused for the offence under Section 302 IPC and sentencing him to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay fine of ' 500/- and in default to undergo simple imprisonment for two months. The case of the prosecution in brief is that the deceased, namely Kavuluri Janakamma, was working as a Cook in S.T. Girls Residential High School, Kachanapally. P.W. 6, who is the son of the deceased, was studying VIII class in Saraswathi Vidya Mandir, Yellandu, and was residing with his uncle. P.W. 2, the daughter of the deceased, who was studying V class in S.T. Girls Residential High School, Kachanapally, was staying with her. The accused, namely Pusam Nagaraju R/o. Kachanapally, is said to have developed illicit intimacy with the deceased since three years. The deceased used to visit her son at Yellandu now and then, and on her return from such visits, the accused doubting her chastity, used to come home drunk and beat her saying that she was maintaining illicit sexual relationship with others at Yellandu.

(2.) On 02.09.2005, the deceased went to Yellandu to meet the revenue officials regarding land issue. She also visited her son and returned home by 8.00 p.m. The accused picked up a quarrel with the deceased and beat her with hands and belt, and later, having dinner, both of them slept. Thereafter, the accused woke up in the midnight and killed the deceased by throttling her neck. P.W. 2, who was sleeping by the side of the deceased, witnessed the incident. On the next day, P.W. 2 went to the house of P.W. 3 and informed him about the incident. Then P.W. 3 and L.W. 5 came to the house and saw the dead body of the deceased lying on the cot. After killing the deceased, the accused anticipating threat from the relatives of the deceased, decided to kill himself. He climbed the electric pole situated in front of the forest office at Kachanapally. When he touched the live high tension wires, he fell down. Due to electrocution, the accused sustained burn injuries over his hands and chest.

(3.) On receipt of written information from the Village Secretary, Allapally, P.W. 9, namely S.I. of Police, registered a case in Crime No. 12/2005 under Section 302 IPC against the accused, and took up investigation. He along with his staff went to the scene of offence and having found the accused attempted suicide, registered another case in Crime No. 13 of 2005 for the offence under Section 309 IPC. Then, he sent the accused for treatment to Government Hospital, Khammam. On receipt of wireless message, P.W. 10, namely the C.I. of Police, Tekulapally, visited the scene of offence. He took up investigation from P.W. 9 and verified the investigation done by him. Thereafter, he examined the scene of offence in the presence of mediators, namely P.W. 7 and L.W. 22 and incorporated the details in the C.D. Form. He also prepared a rough sketch of the scene in their presence. He recorded the statements of P.Ws. 1 to 6 and others, and after conducting inquest over the dead body of the deceased in the presence of P.W. 7 and L.Ws. 22 and 23, sent the same to Government Hospital, for post-mortem examination. On discharge of the accused from the Government Hospital, he effected his arrest on 22.09.2005 at his house and produced him before the Magistrate, who remanded him to judicial custody. P.W. 8, namely the Medical Officer, having conducted autopsy over the dead body of the deceased opined the cause of death of the deceased as Asphyxia, leading to permanent cardiac arrest (throttling). Thus, P.W. 10 filed charge sheet against the accused for the offence punishable under Section 302 IPC.