MANDALA SAMBAIAH Vs. STATE OF A P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This criminal appeal is filed by the sole accused against the judgment dated 11th October, 1990, in S.C.No. 297 of 1989 on the file of the Sessions Judge, Warangal. The Sessions Judge tried the sole accused Mandala Sambaiah for the offences under Sections 302 and 380 IPC. On the basis of the circumstantial evidence and the recovery of the stolen property, the Sessions Judge came to the conclusion that both the charges are established and convicted the accused and sentenced him to suffer imprisonment for life and to suffer R.I. for five years for the latter offence under Section 380 IPC. Both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

(2.) In this appeal Sri P. Raghava Reddy contends that the circumstantial evidence does not forma complete chain and that the Sessions Judge committed a mistake in convicting the accused, especially, when he disbelieved the evidence regarding recovery of the stolen property M.Os. 1 to 3. He contends that the chain of circumstances established against the accused, namely, his being seen in the house of the deceased at 9 or 9.30 A.M. and his being seen coming out of the house of the deceased at 11.30 A.M. are not sufficient to find the accused guilty for the offence of murder and for the offence under Section 380 IPC. He also contends that there is any amount of doubt as to how the police came to know about the occurrence and as to when exactly Ex.P-1 was written and whether it is a genuine first information to the police.

(3.) On behalf of the State, the Additional Public Prosecutor contends that this is a case purely based upon circumstantial evidence and if the recovery is accepted, the accused is certainly bound to be convicted.