SHYAMRAO SADASHIV Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is the appeal of the accused Shyamrao, who on his conviction under sections 366 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code has been sentenced to seven years' R. I. on each count with the direction for the concurrent running of these sentences.

(2.) THE prosecutrix Mst. Babybai Gond is the wife of P. W. 4 Ramesh and at the relevant time of the incident i. e. on 23-6-1983, she was staying at her husband's house in village Gangatwada. Parents of the prosecutrix Mst. Baby were residents of village Lodhikheda and the appellant-accused well knew the prosecutrix and her parents, inasmuch as, he had been living in front of their house at Lodhikheda for a few months, long before the incident. A day prior to 23-6-1983, the appellant-accused had come to Gangatwada and had stayed at the house of the prosecutrix's husband Ramesh. On the next day, at about mid-noon, the appellant-accused, P. W. 12 Mst. Babybai and her husband P. W. 4 Ramesh had started by bus together, for Lodhikheda; but on the way, they had alighted from the bus at Sonsar and had stayed at the house of P. W. 6 Mst. Rukmabai, to whose son, Keshavrao (P. W. 9), the appellant-accused's sister had been married. The appellant-accused all alone in the comapny of Mst. Babybai had been finally gone to Nagpur. From Nagpur, both returned to Sonsar where the appellant-accused was apprehended by the police and the prosecutrix was handed over to her parents.

(3.) THE above facts being not disputed, the case of the prosecution was that the appellant-accused when he had come to the house of the prosecutrix's husband P. W. 4 Ramesh at village Gangatwada, on the day preceding 23-6-1983, he had told both Ramesh and his wife Babybai that he had been sent by the prosecutrix's parents to fetch Mst. Babybai to the parental home, inasmuch as, her mother was seriously ill. On this false representation, made by the appellant-accused, not only the prosecutrix accompanied the appellant-accused for going to her parental home at village Lodhikheda but her husband also accompanied her. During the journey when all these three had got down at Sonsar where the appellant-accused wanted to meet his sister, the appellant-accused had taken his brother-in-law P. W. 9 Keshavrao and the prosecutrix's husband P. W. 4 Ramesh to see a cinema in a certain picture-house. In the midst of picture, the appellant-accused slipped away from the picture hall on a false pretext, and came back to the house of the appellant's sister and again misrepresented to the prosecutrix that her husband Ramesh was waiting for her at the Bus-Stand for going to Lodhikheda where they were required to go for seeing the prosecutrix's ailing mother. The prosecutrix, least suspecting the version of the appellant-accused, went with him to the Bus-Stand but she did not find her husband. The appellant-accused again misrepresented to her that her husband might well have left for Lodhikheda by an earlier bus; and therefore, at his behest, both boarded another bus, but the appellant-accused made her get down from the bus at Pandhurna crossing; and when the prosecutrix protested, he silenced her with a threat that he would kill her, in case, she made any protest. From Pandhurna crossing, the appellant-accused took her to village Badchicholi and next day, she was taken to the village Digras where the appellant-accused stayed with the prosecutrix at a certain person's house for about a week. From Digras, the appellant-accused took the prosecutrix to Nagpur at first to the house of one Soma, then to the house of one Kachrabai and finally to the house of the appellant-accused's close relation Dr. Kabre. The prosecutrix's husband and parents on learning of the fraud, committed by the appellant-accused, in taking away the prosecutrix, searched for both, and then, the matter was reported to the Police. On some clue that the appellant-accused was seen in Nagpur with the prosecutrix, relations went there and made the appellant-accused come to Sonsar along with the prosecutrix. At Sonsar the appellant-accused was arrested by the Police.