STATE OF WEST BENGAL Vs. ASHOKE BOSE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The State has preferred this Govt. Appeal No. 6/94 against a judgment of acquittal of Ashoke Bose who was an accused in a case under S. 302 of the IPC passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, 1st Court, Howrah in S.T. Case No. II (July)/1993.

(2.) The prosecution case, in short, is that Dipa Dutta (P.W. 4) and the victim Gopa Mitra were friends and they were to appear in Higher Secondary Examination in February, 1992. Both of them went to attend the coaching class of Basudeb Banerjee of Ballavbati as usual on 1-2-92 at about 6-30 to 7-00 a.m. and after finishing their study there both of them went to see a fair at Munsirhat. Thereafter they were returning home through the brick built village path of their village Bhursuit Bamunpara at about 10-30 a.m. The said village path runs from west to east from the village Bhursuit Bamunpara and on the western end of that path Munsirhat Panpur Road runs, which is a motorable road. When both of them were proceeding towards their village from the junction of the village path and the Munsirhat Panpur Road they saw Ashoke Bose, the accused, sitting on a culvert of the village path and at that time he had a by-cycle with him. When they came up to 30 cubits from that junction through that village path at that time Dipa Dutta was ahead of Gopa. As they crossed the culvert Ashoke followed them on foot with his by-cycle. As Gopa and Dipa proceeded further Dipa heard a sound of falling of a by-cycle and on looking back she saw Ashoke assaulting Gopa with a knife. She then raised alarm and ran towards her house and in that condition she again looked back and found Ashoke running through the field and Sirajul (P.W. 9) and Niyamat (P.W. 8) of village Bursuit Bamunpara caught him after chase. She then had fallen on the road feeling giddiness. Subsequently she came to know that Gopa had died.

(3.) Chitra Ghosh (P.W. 3), elder sister of victim Gopa, married one Probhat Ghosh of Bursuit Bamunpara. Chitra's are 7 sisters and 1 brother name Snehasis Mitra (P.W. 14). Chitra is a School Teacher. On 1-2-1992 at 10-20 to 10-30 a.m. while she was going to attend her school at Munsirhat and came near the Kohinoor Football Club Ground she found from a distance that a person was stabbing another person who was writhing with pain. She then ran to the spot and found Ashoke cleansing his hand marked with blood with a napkin (Gamcha) and Gopa was lying on the ground. She noticed many bleeding injuries on the person of Gopa and she tried to stop the bleeding by pressing the wounds with her hands, but in vain. Ashoke ran through the field and was caught in the field by two persons. She found one by-cycle, one side bag, one knife and one napkin lying at the spot. She also found slippers and wrapper of Gopa. She then took Gopa to the Gabberia hospital with the help of some other persons in a private car.