BINODE PANDEY Vs. THE STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Criminal Appeal No. 317 of 1987 and Death reference Case No. 1 of 1987, which have been heard together, arise out of an order of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, First Court, Howrah. Out of the four appellants, the appellant No. 1, Binode Pandey, happens to be the husband of one Shakuntala. The appellant No. 2, Bharat, is the father of Binode. The appellant No. 3, Rahrani, is the mother of Binode. The appellant No. 4, Madhubala, is the second wife of Binode. These four appellants stood charged under Ss. 120B, 302/34 and 201/34 I. P.C. The charge under Sec. 302/34 I.P.C. was to the effect that these four appellants along with one Manoj Pandey (who happens to be another son of the appellant no. 2, Bharat), on the night of 4/9/86 and 5/9/86 (or at any time before the said night), at 8/3, Sree Charan Sarani (Bally Station Road) under P. S. Bally, District Howrah, in furtherance of their common intention, committed murder by intentionally or knowingly causing the death of Shakuntala Pandey. The charge under Sec. 120B I. P.C. was that they, along with Manoj Pandey, on that night and at that place, agreed to do (or caused to be done) an illegal act to commit murder by causing the death of Shakuntala and that the act of murder of Shakuntala was done in pursuance of an agreement amongst them. The remaining charge under Sec. 201/34 I.P.C. was for causing certain evidence of murder of Shakuntala to disappear with the intention of screening the appellants from legal punishment. It is to be stated in this connection, that Manoj Pandey did not stand trial in this case as the case against him as split up and was sent to the Juvenile Court. On 5/9/86 at about 8 -25 P.M., the Duty Officer of Bally Police Station received an anonymous telephone call to the effect that dead body of Shakuntala Pandey had been kept concealed in the house of Bharat Pandey at 8/3, Sreecharan Sarani, Bally, and that the dead body might be disposed of in course of that night. This information, as recorded in the general diary, is Ext. 10. Immediately, the police officers of Bally P. S. led by the Officer -in -Charge, rushed to the spot to work on the information. The police officers recovered the dead body of Shakuntala in presence of some local witnesses from a north -facing room at the first floor of the house at 8/3, Sreecharan Sarani. The dead body was first identified by the appellant No. 2, Bharat, and thereafter by the local witnesses. The father of Shakuntala also came there and identified the dead body.

(2.) The prosecution case is that the death of Shakuntala was caused by the four appellants and Manoj Pandey, in furtherance of their common intention and that they caused the evidence of the murder of Shakuntala to disappear with a view to screen them from legal punishment. The prosecution examined 18 witnesses. P.W.I is the father of Shakuntala. P.Ws.3, 4, 5, 6 and 8 are the local witnesses, who live near premises No. 8/3, Sreeccharan Sarani, wherefrom the dead body was re covered. P.W.7 is a photographer, who took photographs of the dead body from different angles. P.W. 12 is a Dom, whose service was requisitioned. P.W.11;is a doctor, who held the postmortem examination on the dead body of Shakuntala at 2 -30 P.M. on 6/9/86. On holding the post mortem examination. P.W.11 found scattered burns of first, second and third degree over head, fact neck, tongue and extremities. Coils of intestine were coming out from deep bums at right side of abdomen. The doctor also found diffused echymosis over front of neck upper part and on dissection he found extensive extravasation of blood detected over front side of the neck with trachea of right cornue of the hypoid bone. The hyoid bone was also found fractured. According to the doctor, (P.W.11),' the death of Shakuntala was due to asphyxia as a result of strangulation, which was ante -mortem and homicidal in nature. The doctor opined that the burn injuries were post -mortem injuries and that the time of death was before 24 hours but less than 72 hours. Moderate rigor mortis had passed off. According to the doctor, the death of Shakuntala took place earlier and thereafter the body was burnt. In his opinion, the death of Shakuntala was caused by strangulation. P.W. 17 is a practicing Advocate, who translated two letters, written by Shakuntala, in English. Exts. 3/2 and 3/3 are those two letters. P.Ws. 9, 10, 14 and 15 are Police Constables. P.Ws.2, 16 and 18 are Sub -Inspectors of Police. P.W.13 is the Officer -in -Charge of Bally P.S. The case was first investigated by P.W. 2 and thereafter by P.W.18.

(3.) On a scrutiny of the evidences of the aforesaid P.Ws. and the materials on record, the learned judge found that the following circumstances had been proved by the prosecution against the appellants : -