STATE OF ORISSA Vs. INDRAMANI SARAF

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Government Appeal arises out of the judgment of acquittal passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Bargarh in Sessions Trial No. 142/19 of 1995.

(2.) A compendium of the prosecution case is that the deceased Hemanta is the son of informant (P. W. 1). He had illicit love affair with one Mando, the daughter of Kailash Saraf (Respondent No. 2) and sister of other two Respondents. Such relationship between Mando and the deceased Hemanta was not liked by the Respondents. The Respondents had threatened to finish Hemanta, if he persists with the relationship. At about 5 a.m. on 19-12-1994, the deceased Hemanta was found lying in front of the house of one Okila Sahu (not examined) on the village road. At that time, there was only a 'chadi' and 'ganji' on his body. He was taken to his house for giving treatment of fomentation with fire, as it was suspected that he might have col-

(3.) The prosecution has examined ten witnesses to prove the charge. P. W. 1 is the informant. P. W. 2 is the nephew of P. W. 1, who had seen the rope marks on different parts of the body of the deceased. P. W. 3 is the witness, who saw Indramani (Respondent No. 1) and Jugal (Respondent No. 3) throwing the dead body of the deceased in front of the house of Okila Sahu. P. W. 4 is the witness, who saw the deceased Hemanta last in the company of Jugal Saraf (Respondent No. 3) in the night preceding next the date of occurrence. P. Ws. 5, 6 and 8 are the witnesses to the circumstances like presence of rope marks on the dead body of the deceased. P. W. 7 is the witness to the factum of threatening given by Kailash (Respondent No. 2) to finish Hemanta (deceased). P. Ws. 9 and 10 are the Investigating Officers.