SURYAMANI TARAI Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE three petitioners with another Rama Tarai are under trial under Sections 384/34 and 447/34, Indian Penal Code, before the Assistant Sessions Judge, jajpur, in a sessions case. Prosecution case is that accused Rama Tarai, father-inlaw of the deceased, lodged an F. I. R. (Ex. 1) on 15-11-65 in Dharmashala Police station that his daughter-in-law committed suicide. An unnatural death ease was registered and inquired into by Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police, R. N. Mohapatra (P. W. 6 ). He held inquest and sent the dead body for post mortem examination He came to the conclusion that it was not a case of suicide and so he drew up F. I. R. (Ex. 9) on his own information that the petitioners committed various offences. In course of trial P. W. 2 (a child witness) and P. W. 5 (mother of P W. 2) were examined as eye-witnesses before P W 6 was examined on 20-1-67. In course of cross-examination of P. W 6 it transpired that he had recorded the statements of p. Ws. 2 and 5 during investigation of the information regarding suicide. The petitioners prayed that P. Ws 2 and 5 should be recalled for further cross-examination in the light of those statements. They filed an application on 30-1-67 requesting that the prosecution should be directed to supply copies of the statements made by P Ws. 2 and 5 before P. W. 6 during investigation of the case for suicide, or, in the alternative, to file those statements in Court to enable them to take certified copies of those statements under Section 94, Cr. P C. This application was rejected by the learned Assistant Sessions Judge by an order dated 1-2-67. Against this order tne criminal revision has been filed.

(2.) TWO questions arise for consideration.

(3.) TO answer the first question, it is necessary to refer to the relevant provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code. Under Section 174 (1) (a), the officer in charge of a police-station or some other police-officer empowered by the State Government in that behalf, on receiving information that a person has committed suicide, shall immediately give intimation thereof to the Magistrate empowered to hold inquests, and unless otherwise directed by any rule prescribed by the State Government, or by any general or special order of the District or Sub-Divisional Magistrate, shall proceed to the place where the body of such deceased person is, and there, in the presence of two or more respectable inhabitants of the neighbourhood, shall make an investigation, and draw up a report of the apparent cause of death by giving certain details as specified. Sub-section (3) of Section 174 prescribes that when there is any doubt regarding the whose of death, or when for any other reason the police-officer considers it expedient so to do, he shall forward the body for post mortem examination. In accordance with the above provisions, P. W. 6 investigated into the information of commission of suicide and came to the conclusion that it was not a case of suicide but was one of homicide. He accordingly drew up F. I R. (Ex. 9 ).