DULA MAJHI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE accused appellant Dula Majhi aged about 60 years was convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for life on a charge of having murdered his eldest son Raghua Majhi aged about 35 years by means of a katari, on July 14, 1964 in the mid -night while he was sleeping. The motive of the murder is said to be some dispute over property in the circumstances hereinafter stated :

(2.) THE accused had three sons Raghua, Majhi, the deceased, Ludhura Majhi and Budban Majhi. It is said that the deceased separated from the accused and his two brothers, about three years ago and demanded a share out of the joint family property; the accused refused to give a share to the deceased and the son and the father are said to have been frequently quarrelling over this.

(3.) THE prosecution case is that at night after meals the deceased and his wife P. W. 1 and their children were sleeping in an open shed; at about mid -night the wife of the deceased woke up on hearing the groaning sound of her husband and found him lying on the ground; she noticed the accused and two other persons running away from the open shed; she could see a katari in the hand of the accused at that time; she saw her husband lying dead in a pool of blood; she raised an alarm and went to the house of her neighbour Mohan Majhi (P. W. 2), but did not find him as he had gone to the house of his neighbour Bhaduli Majhi (P. W. 3) on hearing the alarm; both P. Ws. 2 and 3 arrived in the house of the deceased; the wife of the deceased told them the same night that she had seen the accused running away from the open shed with a Katari in his hand. Next morning the villagers assembled in the house of the deceased; the accused is said to have made an extra -judicial confession before P. W. 2 Mohan Majhi and P. W. 4 Badra Majhi of his having committed the murder.