SANKAR MOHANTY Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant has been convicted under Section 302 I.P.C. and sentenced to imprisonment for life for having committed murder by intentionally causing the death of his wife. Duti.

(2.) Prosecution case may be briefly stated. In the year 1979 appellant married the deceased, second daughter of P.W. 1 of village Puruna Balanga, at his ancestral home in village Chandan pur. Though the appellant had made no demand for dowry, P.W. 1 had paid him Rs. 1,200/- at the marriage alcar and had promised to pay Rs 300/- more later. About six months prior to the deceaseds death in April, 1981, the appellant and the deceased bad shifted to a house at Sadis Patna within a kilometre from Chandan pur and lived there. The house at Sadis Patna was the subject matter of litigation between the appellant and his brother Baidhar on one side and their uncle Banambar, P.W. 11, on the other. About three months prior to the deceaseds death, the deceased had complained to P.W. 13, her cousin sister, about the torture meted out to her by the appellant because of non-payment of the balance sum of Rs. 300/- promised by P.W. 1. Sometime thereafter Duti left for her fathers house in the company of P.W. 13. The deceased informed P. W. 1 that she had come to collect the money without which she was being rebuked and beaten up by the appellant. On the following day the appellant came to P.W. ITS house and demanded payment of Rs. 300/- on the ground that he was in urgent need of money. P.W. 1 pledged a brass utensil with P.W 3 and collected Rs. 200/- which he paid to the appellant who thereafter left for his house. In the evening of 6.4.81, P.Ws. 4 and 8 of village Sadis Patna saw the appellant assaulting the deceased in his single-room house in the presence of Baidhar. On 7-4-81 the door of the appellant's house was found closed from inside and as no one came out of the house during the day, the villagers began to suspect foul-play. At about 5.00 p.m., P.W. 11 verified and found that the door of the appellants house was still closed from inside. At 7.30 p.m. P.W. 11 lodged the written report Ext. 9, with P.W. 14, Officer-in-Charge, Sadar P.S., Pun. P.W. 14 made station diary entry, Ext. 9/1. and proceeded to the spot. He found that both the doors of the appellants house were bolted from inside and there was no response to call. He flashed a torchlight through a hole in the door-leaf and found a female lying dead inside. He got the front door broken open in the presence of witnesses. On entering inside he found that a woman was lying dead. The appellant and his brother identified the woman to be Duti. In the meanwhile P.W. 1 had arrived at the appellants house and lodged F.I.R., Ext. 1 with P.W. 14 who registered the present case and took up in investigation. As it was late in the night, P.W. 14 closed both the doors and posted guards at the house. On 8-4-81 P.W. 14 held inquest over the dead body, vide Ext. 2, the inquest report. The inquest was witnessed by two doctors, P.Ws. 2 and 6. P.W. 14 seized a mat and a Gamuchha under seizure list, Ext. 6, a Lathi, Katari, grinder, grinding-stone and seized wood under seizure list, Ext. 7, and a Dhoti and sample earth from the room under seizure list, Ext. 8. He sent the dead body to P.W. 5 for post-mortem examination vide dead body challan, Ext. 16, and command certificate, Ext. 17. He had sent the seized articles for chemical examination. On completion of investigation charge sheet was submitted against the appellant who was then committed to the Court of Sessions.

(3.) The appellant was charged under section 302 I.P.C. and put on trial. Fourteen witnesses have been examined on behalf of the prosecution and none on behalf of the defence. The defence plea is one of denial. In his statement recorded under Section 313 Cr. P.C., the appellant has stated that all the allegations made against him are false and that he had no knowledge about his wifes death until he returned to the village by the time the doors were opened by the police. He has further stated that P.W. 11 is inimically disposed towards him and his brother and that the present case has been falsely foisted against him at the instance of P.W. 11. The learned Sessions Judge who tried the case found the appellant guilty under Section 302 I.P.C. Convicted and sentenced him there under to imprisonment for life.