JOGESWAR SAHU Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal from jail is directed against the judgment and order passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Bhawanipatna, convicting the appellant under Section 302, Indian Penal Code for causing the death of one Gobinda Prasad Dubey and sentencing him to R.I. for life.

(2.) A brief narration of the prosecution case leading to the present appeal is that on the night of September 20/21, 1978 while the deceased was sleeping on his Thela (push-cart) in Junagarh, the appellant killed him by inflicting injuries on his person with a Tangia. It is further alleged that towards the small hours of 21st September, 1978, Saraswati, the concubine of the deceased, came out of her house and saw that her paramour who was asleep on his Thela just in front of her house was lying dead. She went near him and found blood-stains on his clothings which were lying disturbed. Thereafter she brought a lamp from her house and on examining the deceased she found numerous injuries on the left part of the upper body, on the left arm and on the left side of the head. Immediately thereafter she came to the house of Madan Sethi which is to the east of the place of occurrence and reported the matter to him. Madan in turn advised her to lodge the F.I.R. in the police station. Saraswati also informed about the occurrence to P.W. 5, her neighbour, and both of them went to the police station where the F.I.R. was lodged by Saraswati. On receipt of the F.I.R., the police started investigation and on conclusion of the investigation, the appellant was charge-sheeted under Section 302, Indian Penal Code and put on trial.

(3.) The appellant took a plea of denial.