BHAWANI SHANKAR NATH Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) MR . D.P. Sahu, the learned Counsel for the Petitioner, has challenged the concurrent findings of the trial and appellate Courts against the Petitioner holding him guilty of the charge of committing lurking house trespass with the intent to commit theft under Section 457 of the Indian Penal Code on the basis of the evidence of seven witnesses examined for the prosecution and accepting its case that during the night of the 29/30th April, 1976 at about 1.30 a.m., the Petitioner committed the offence of lurking house trespass by entering into the building belonging to Anirudha Bhoi (P.W. 1), used as a human dwelling, in order to commit theft when he was detected inside a room which had been chained from inside and caught red -handed and dispelling the case of the defence that the entry was not for the purpose of commission of theft. The case of the Petitioner was that he was in love with the wife of P.W. 1. Mr. Sahu has submitted that the findings recorded against the Petitioner are unreasonable and perverse calling for interference by this Court in revision, while Mr. Rath, the learned Additional Standing Counsel has supported the order of conviction. The Petitioner, for his conviction, has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of one year.

(2.) I have been taken through the relevant evidence from the side of the prosecution and the evidence of two witnesses examined on behalf of the defence.

(3.) P .W. 4 had blurted out a statement unsupported by any other evidence that to his query, the Petitioner told him that he had entered the room to commit theft. None of the other co -villagers of P.W. 1 had testified about it and while recording the statement of the Petitioner under Section 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, his attention had not been drawn to this, I am inclined to accept the contention raised on behalf of the Petitioner that the evidence of P.W. 4 with regard to the extra -judicial confession could not be accepted.