BIJAY PURTY Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is directed against the judgment and order dated 2.8.2001 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Keonjhar in Sessions Trial No. 45 of 1998 convicting the Appellant for commission of offences under Sections 302/323 I.P.C. and sentencing him to undergo imprisonment for life under Sections 302 I.P.C. No separate sentence has been passed for conviction under Section 323 I.P.C.

(2.) P .W. 1, the informant Smt. Manju Purty is the deceased Minati's elder sister. The Appellant married Bela, the younger sister of the informant. P.W. 2 is the informant's son whereas P.W. 3 is the informant's husband. The case of the prosecution is that the deceased had married to one Pahad Singh Badra and they were staying at Bhubaneswar. The Appellant and Bela were initially staying at Daitary. Thereafter, they shifted to Bhubaneswar and resided for some days with the deceased and Pahad Singh Badra. While they were residing in Bhubaneswar, the Appellant suspected the relationship between his wife and Pahad Singh Badra and, for that reason, left the house of Pahad Singh. After staying for some days at Bhubaneswar, he returned to Daitary. There was ill -feeling between the Appellant on the one hand and the informant, P.W. 1, P.W. 3, the deceased and the deceased's husband on the other. On the date of occurrence i.e. on 9.11.1997, the deceased with her husband came to the house of P.W. 1 at Daitary. At about 8.30 to 9 P.M., the informant, her husband P.W. 3 and P.W. 2 along with the deceased and her husband Pahad Singh were sitting in the house of P.W. 3 and enjoying liquor and discussing about the Appellant and his wife Bela when the occurrence took place. It is alleged that, all on a sudden, the Appellant came into the room with a wooden plank and gave out that as his wife had been separated from him, he would likewise separate the wife of Pahad Singh, and thereafter dealt successive blows with the wooden plank on the head of the deceased causing severe bleeding injuries as a result of which she fell down and became senseless upon which the Appellant dealt Anr. blow with the said wooden plank on the deceased's leg. When P.W. 3 and Pahad Singh intervened, the Appellant dealt blows also with the said wooden plank on their heads. When P.W. 1 raised alarm, the Appellant escaped from the house with the said wooden plank. Thereafter, the deceased was taken to Daitary Hospital where the doctor after giving first -aid advised her to shift the deceased to S.C.B. Medical College, Cuttack. The deceased was brought back to P.W. 1's house and on the very same night, she succumbed to the injuries. On the next morning, on the oral report of P.W. 1, an F.I.R. was registered and investigation was taken up. On completion of investigation, charge sheet was submitted against the Appellant for commission of the aforesaid offences.

(3.) PROSECUTION examined eight witnesses to establish the charges. P.Ws. 1 to 3 have already been referred to above. P.W. 4 is a witness to inquest over the dead body of the deceased. P.W. 5 is a witness to seizure of split wood and clothes. P.W. 6 is the doctor who examined the injured persons P.W. 3 and Pahad Singh Badra. P.W. 7 is the doctor who conducted post mortem examination over the dead body of the deceased. P.W. 8 is the Investigating Officer. The learned trial Court having relied upon the evidence of P.Ws. 1, 2 and 3 coupled with the medical evidence available from P.Ws. 6 and 7 found the Appellant guilty of the charges.