(1.) THIS is an appeal against an order of conviction under Section 302 of the Penal Code passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Nadia in Sessions Trial No. 3 of December 1979 sentencing the appellant to imprisonment for life.
(2.) THE appellant was accused of murdering his wife Sabita alias Chhabi Rani. The prosecution case shortly put is as follows The appellant Mahadeb Ghose and his wife Sabita lived separately from the mother of the accused since Sabita was not pulling on well with her mother -in -law. The appellant works at Dhubulia which is at a distance of about 50 miles from village Bhabanipur where the victim resided On 9 -8 -1978 the accused came to the village and was seen leaving the village along with his wife Sabita at about 3.30 p.m. by PWs 10 and 11. PWs 10 and 11 are residents of Bhabanipur. On their query the accused gave out that they were going to the place of their Guru while the wife gave out that they ware going to the place of work of the appellant. Sometime later at about 5 p.m. the accused and his wife were seen by PWs 3 and 4 at a place known as Karuigachhi. There also the prosecution case is that the accused gave out to PWs 3 and 4 that they were going to the house of their Guru. Sometime thereafter at about dusk, PW 2 was proceeding from Shyamnagar to his village at Swaruppur and while going along the village pathway he saw near a pakur tree by the side of Hatasisha field a man sitting upon a woman lying on the ground. As PW 2 tried to approach that man the latter threatened him and thereupon Pw 2 came to his village, informed people and came back to the site. When he came back he did not see the man there nor the woman but a groaning sound of a woman was heard coming from inside a paddy -field about 5/6 rass away. They went to that spot and found a woman lying in an unconscious state. She was removed to Shyamnagar hospital. PW 2 identified the accused as the person who was seen sitting on the chest of the woman. The victim woman ultimately succumbed to the injuries on 11 -8 -1978. On information of the death being communicated to the P. S. initially an unnatural death ease was started and later on a written complaint being lodged by pw 1, the father of the victim girl on 12 -8 -1978 the formal F.I.R. (Ext. 1) was drawn up.
(3.) AS many as 22 witnesses were examined in this case although the material witnesses are PWs 2, 3, 4, 10, 11 and 15. The case essentially was one depending on circumstantial evidence.