STATE OF ORISSA Vs. GANIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Insatiable nagging rapacious desire to accumulate property tormented the appellant Gania @ Ganeshwar Mahanta so irresistibly that he committed most scurrilous act of annihilating two of his close relatives in broad day light, for which crime he has been convicted and sentenced to death by the learned Sessions Judge, Jajpur in C.T.No. 232 of 2011, State of Orissa versus Ganeshwar Mahanta, by impugned judgment and order dated 13.1 2015.For confirmation of the death sentence, learned trial Judge has made a reference u/s 366(1) Cr.P.C., in short code, to this court and has submitted the essential record for the said purpose. Contrarily, to avert going to gallows and intense feeling of self preservation compelled the convict accused appellant to prefer Criminal Appeal no. 13 of 2015, Gania @ Ganeshwar Mahanta versus State Orissa, challenging his aforesaid conviction and sentence u/s 374(2) of the Code. Since both, the Reference and Criminal Appeal, arises out of self same judgment and both the lis are intertwined, they are being decided by this common judgment.

(2.) As is gathered from the oral and documentary evidences trotted out during the trial, the incident in question had its genesis in an agrarian property dispute amongst the two deceased and the appellant from the rival sides. A priory, it is discernible that one Hatiram Mahanta of village Rangita Nagar(also known as Madhapur) under police station Sukinda district Jajpur, had a son Dukhbandhu Mahanta(the first deceased in the concerned incident and herein after referred to as D1), who was the father of the informant Jaidev Mahanta/ PW3, Smt. Kanchan @ Tarini Mahanta (Second deceased in the incident in question and herein after referred to as D2), Prem Lata Mahanta/ PW7, Kajri Mahanta(not examined). Smt. Diptimayee Mahanta/ PW1 is the maternal niece being daughter of sister of the informant. D2 was married to one Muralidhar Mahanta of village Natisahi (also known as Bandhagaon), P.S. Sukinda, district Jajpur whose brother is Laxman Mahanta. Appellant accused is the son of Laxman Mahanta and hence stands in relationship as nephew of D2. Prior to the incident in question Murlidhar Mahanta, husband of D2, had expired and hence D2, a widow, was left with her daughters including Saraswati Mahanta/ PW9 to foster. Chintamani Mahanta/PW 8 is the brother in-law of D2, being husband of her younger sister. It is further discernible from the evidences that because of avarice and sinister intent to grab the entire real estate of the deceased D2, acrimony and hostile feelings existed between the families of D2 and that of the appellant and because of that, albeit, appellant had separated from rest of the family, but he, intermittently, hurled life threats to the entire family of D2 including her son-in-law.

(3.) 13.3.2011 was the day on which one of the daughters of D2 was to solemnise her nuptial knot for which her near relatives had conglomerated at D2's house in village Natisahi including her father Dukhabandhu Mahanta/D1, and other relative witnesses examined during the trial. It is alleged that following day of the marriage i.e., 14.3.2011, Dukhabandhu Mahanta/D1 started return journey on his Atlas cycle at 10 a.m. and when he reached near the pond called Sologadia tank, in front of the house of one Indramani Mahanta, all of a sudden the appellant, armed with a Bhujali (a sharp cutting weapon) appeared at that spot and assaulted D1 on his back and neck with Bhujali. While he was recovering Bhujali from the neck, its handle came out and fell down on the ground. Sustaining fatal injury, which had substantially dissected his neck, D1, fell down on his cycle. In the process to ward off the blows D1 had also sustained injuries on his hand. Appellant, thereafter, tramped towards Natisahi with blood stained Bhujali. Quarter to an hour later(15 minutes) appellant came to the second spot, near a Mahua tree, where D2 was standing and assaulted her with Bhujali on her neck, face, forehead, and other parts of her body. Onlooker witnesses, including D2's family members PWs 1,2,6,7,8,&9, were accosted and threatened by the appellant that whosoever will endeavor to rescue D2 will also be murdered kept the witnesses at bay and desisted them from taking any life saving endeavour. Sustaining injuries D2 fell down on the ground supinely and succumbed instantaneously to the fatal injuries inflicted on her. Sarswati Mahanta/PW9 daughter of D2 along with one Sarita tried to help her mother but they were chased by the appellant to be annihilated, however they sprinted and took shelter in a house. Appellant thereafter retreated from the incident scene towards canal Bandha road along with Bhujali. PW9 and Sarita thereafter poured some water into D2's mouth.