GANGARAM Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Appellant Gangaram has been convicted of the offence under section 302 of the Penal Code and sentenced to imprisonment for life for killing his own wife Mst. Dewantin.

(2.) THE case for the prosecution was that a couple of days prior to the night of occurrence, the accused happened to see his wife and some unknown man together, in a field. That man ran away on seeing the accused. The accused introgated his wife but she did not give out the name of that man. On the night between the 30th and the 31st December, 1960, when Gangaram and Dewantin were the only persons in a room of their house, the accused again asked his wife the name of that man, but she did not give out the name even on this occasion. Thereupon, the Appellant killed her by strangulation. He also tred a cloth tightly round his own neck. In the meantime Bania (P. W. 8), father of the accused, woke up when Agindas Choukidar who was on the usual rounds called out people by their names. Bania happened to hear some unusual sound coming from the room. He called out the accused and also Dewantin but neither of them responded. He then raised an alaram when villagers collected. The door of the room was chained from inside. Jhumuk (P. W. 3) was then asked to break open that door which he did. On the floor Dewantin was lying dead and the accused was also iying(sic) unconscious. On an effort being made for about two hours, the accused regained consciousness and then he confessed to the people that he had killed his wife, because he had seen her in a compromising position and inspite of his repeated interrogation she would not give out the name of that man.

(3.) THE accused does not explain in his statement under Section 342, Criminal Procedure Code, how his wife was killed.