ABHIHUD JAJOWAR Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This criminal appeal from Jail under Sec. 383, Code of Criminal Procedure [CrPC], 1973 ['the Code' or 'the CrPC'] is directed against a Judgment and Order dtd. 4/2/2021 passed by the Court of learned Sessions Judge, Jorhat ['the trial court', for short] in Sessions Case no. 184[J-T] of 2018. By the Judgment and Order dtd. 4/2/2021, the accused-appellant has been convicted for the offence under Sec. 300, Indian Penal Code [IPC] and he has been sentenced under Sec. 302, IPC to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000.00, in default of payment of fine, to undergo simple imprisonment for another one month. It has been further ordered that the period of detention already undergone, would be set off under Sec. 428, CrPC and the fine amount after realization should be given to the family members of the deceased.

(2.) The case, Sessions Case no. 184[J-T] of 2018 arose out of Borholla Police Station Case no. 67 of 2018 and corresponding G.R. Case no. 430/2018. The First Information Report [FIR] in connection with Borholla Police Station Case no. 67 of 2018 was lodged before the Officer In-Charge, Borholla Police Station on 20/8/2018 by one Zaru Biyam Jajowar [since deceased] as the informant. In the FIR, the informant had inter alia mentioned that at around mid-night intervening 19/8/2018 and 20/8/2018, he heard groaning from the house of Rabi Jajowar. Going there, the informant [since deceased] found Rabi Jajowar in an unconscious state. The informant suspected that Abhihud Jajowar, that is, the accused had hacked Rabi Jajowar, that is, the deceased to death with sharp weapon. On receipt of the FIR [Ext.-5], the Officer In-Charge, Borholla Police Station registered the same as Borhholla Police Station Case no. 67 of 2018 for the offence under Sec. 302, IPC and took up the investigation of the case himself.

(3.) It transpires from the materials on record that prior to lodgment of the FIR, the Officer In-Charge, Borholla Police Station, Debo Jyoti Phukan [P.W.14] received a telephonic information from the Village Defence Party [VDP] personnel of Village - Chereli Gohain Gaon on 19/8/2018 to the effect that some unknown persons had assaulted one person in that village and the injured person was lying in an unconscious state. It was further informed by the VDP personnel that they had informed 108 ambulance to shift the injured person to hospital for medical treatment. On receipt of the said telephonic information, the Officer In-Charge, Borholla Police Station entered the information in the General Diary as General Diary [G.D.] Entry no. 281 dtd. 19/8/2018. Immediately after registration of the G.D. Entry no. 281 on 19/8/2018, P.W.14, Deba Jyoti Phukan along with his staff proceeded to Village - Chereli Gohain Gaon where the incident had occurred and reached the house compound of the deceased, Rabi Jajowar. Going there, they found Abhihud Jajowar lying unconscious in a pool of blood with cut injuries on his neck. As in the meantime 108 ambulance service arrived at the place of occurrence [P.O.], that is, the house of the deceased, Rabi Jajowar, the injured person, Abhihud Jajowar was shifted to a hospital at Titabar. It has further emerged from the testimony of P.W.14 that when he [P.W.14] entered into the house of Rabi Jajowar, he found Rabi Jajowar [the deceased] lying dead in a pool of blood with cut injury in his neck. The incident was reported to the Superintendent of Police [S.P.], Jorhat and a request was sent by P.W.14 to the Magistrate for holding inquest on the deadbody of the deceased. As P.W.14 was informed that the inquest would be held only in the morning hours on the following day, he made arrangement for guarding the deadbody under the supervision of his staff with the help of the VDP personnel and villagers. It was in the morning hours on the following day, that is, on 20/8/2018, the informant Zaru Biyam Jajowar lodged the FIR [Ext.-5] in the Police Station. The informant, Zaru Biyam Jajowar was a brother of the deceased, Rabi Jajowar. After registration of the FIR [Ext.-5], the investigation was taken up by Deba Jyoti Phukan [P.W.14], the Officer In-Charge, Borholla Police Station himself and the statement of the informant, Zaru Biyam Jajowar was recorded in the Police Station. Thereafter, the Investigating Officer [I.O.] [P.W.14] proceeded to the P.O. When the Executive Magistrate arrived at the P.O., inquest proceeding on the deadbody of the deceased was conducted on 20/8/2018. After completion of the inquest proceeding on the deadbody at around 09-00 p.m. on 20/8/2018, the Executive Magistrate and Circle Officer, Titabar Revenue Circle recorded her findings in an Inquest Report [Ext.-1]. The deadbody was thereafter, sent to the Jorhat Medical College and Hospital [JMC&H] for post-mortem examination. After the arrival of the deadbody in the JMC&H at around 12-00 p.m., the post-mortem examination on the deadbody of the deceased was performed and after completion of the post-mortem examination, the Autopsy Doctor recorded his findings in a Post-Mortem Examination [PME] Report [Ext.4].