SHANKAR SETHI Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ACCUSED in Sessions Case No. 37 of 1997 has filed the above noted Jail Criminal Appeal challenging to the order of conviction under Sections 324 and 302, Indian Penal Code as per the impugned judgment delivered on 17.5.1997 by Learned First Additional Sessions Judge, Berhampur.

(2.) ACCORDING to the case of the prosecution, accused is the younger brother of the informant/P.W. No. 1, Sivaram Sethi. They are washer men by caste. A dispute arose relating to washing the clothes of one Sindhu Badhei. Accused being the earlier washer man in the family of Sindhu Badhei -informant took the job of washing clothes of Sindhu Badhei and therefore accused was bearing a grudge against informant and his wife. Jitendra, the deceased and Rabi are two sons of the informant respectively aged 12 and 10 years by the date of occurrence. On 7.4.1996, P.W. No. 1 was in the agricultural field and at about 11 A.M. his above named two sons came and informed him that accused was quarrelling with their mother, i.e., the wife of the informant namely Damayanti Sethi (P.W. No. 2). On hearing that P.W. No. 1, Sivaram Sethi with his sons rushed to the house and protested to the aggressive action of the accused. They tussled with each other and in that process accused brought out the knife (M.O. I) and dealt a blow to the head of P.W. No. 1. As a result of that P.W. No. 1 sustained bleeding injury and his 12 years old son Jitendra, i.e., deceased came for rescue of the injured father. At that moment accused dealt a knife blow on the head of Jitendra. He fell down sustaining bleeding injury because of that blow. Immediately Jitendra was taken to nearby P.H.C. at Sheragada, where the Doctor P.K. Das (P.W. No. 15) gave him preliminary treatment and advised for his specialized treatment because of the serious condition. P.W. No. 15 also examined the injuries of P.W. No. 1. Those injury certificates have been marked as Exts. 11 and 12 respectively. The deceased was then removed to the M.K.C.G. Medical College & Hospital, Berhampur, and at about 4 A.M. in the morning between 7/8/4/1996 the deceased succumbed to the injuries by not recovering from the coma. In the meantime, in the evening hours P.W. No. 1 went and reported the matter in the Police Station and on the basis of that a case was registered for the offences under Sections 307, 324 and 506, Indian Penal Code. After receiving the intimation regarding death of Jitendra, offence under Section 302, Indian Penal Code was also added. On completion of a routine investigation, charge sheet was submitted for the offence under Sections 307 and 302, Indian Penal Code and charge was accordingly framed by the Trial Court after commitment. Accused pleaded not guilty and claimed for trial.

(3.) IN addition to the plea of denial at the stage of framing of the charge, in course of cross examination of the prosecution witnesses, accused also suggested that in course of the occurrence he was attacked and he dealt blow by means of stone and not by knife. In support of the defence, accused examined one co -villager, Karuna Sahu (D.W. No. 1).