SAWAMI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Sawami Appellant, a boy still in his teens, has been convicted for the murder of his mother Mst. Bhagwan Kaur and sentenced to transportation for life. He has appealed against his conviction and sentence.

(2.) The prosecution case is that the father of the Appellant had died and Mst. Bhagwan Kaur his mother contacted intimacy with one Mangal Singh of Bhaike-Pishaur and started living with him there. Lal Singh the nephew this Mangal Singh then contacted liaison with her and enticed her away to his own village. At that place she contracted Karewa marriage with Lal Singh. Consequently Lal Singh and Mst. Bhagwan Kaur lived in village Ageti as husband and wife. The present Appellant frequently visited his mother in that village. She had two sons from her first husband and the accused was the youngest. On 25-12-51 the accused as usual visited his. Mother in village Agati. He stayed that night there. Next morning at about 10 A. M. he was sitting at the house of Bara Singh carpenter when his mother went there and asked him to take his meals. The mother and the son returned to the house. They were seen, sitting side by side where she was preparing the meals. Shortly afterwards, Hazara Singh. The father of Lal Singh heard a shout from her. He rushed to the place and saw the Appellant inflicting an injury on her person. The accused then went out of the house. Hazara Singh's hue and cry attracted Bara Singh and Sadhu Singh to the spot. Both these witnesses saw the accused running away from the house of Lal Singh. He was at that time in possession of a Kulhari. Karam Chand P. W. who was sitting in front of his house also saw the accused running away. All these three witnesses pursued the accused for a short distance but could not succeed in arresting him. Later, Kazara Singh wends to the fields and gave information about the incident to his son Lal Singh. Mst. Bhagwan Kaur died at the spot. On the same day Bara Singh Lambardar made a report of the incident at police station IV ache situate at a distance of 4 miles. M. Niranjan Prashad, Station House Officer, Nabha, alter recording the report immediately left for the spot. On reaching there he prepared, inquest report and injury statement of the deceased he took into possession some blood-stained earth from the spot. He also recorded the statements of the witnesses on the very first day. This officer almost completed the whole investigation on that very day. He went to the village of the Appellant where he arrested him on 30-12-51. The accused pointed out a place and from underneath a bush axe Ex. P1 was recovered at his instance. This was later found to be stained with human blood by the Imperial Serologist. As a result of the investigation, the Appellant was sent to stand his trial, with the result indicated above. The Appellant was examined by the Committing Court as well as by the trial court. He denied his guilt and also denied the recovery of axe P1 at his instance. He produced two witnesses in defense belonging to his village Dhabi. They deposed that the accused Appellant was working as a carpenter in their own village at about the time of occurrence.

(3.) Dr. Amar Singh Civil Surgeon Nabha conducted post mortem examination on the dead body of Mst. Bhagwan Kaur on 27-12-51 at 10 A. M. He found an incised wound 31/2 x 1 bone cut on the right side of the head on mastoid region cutting the brain substance and pine of the ear. The cause of death in the opinion of the Doctor was the fracture of the right temporal bone and brain underneath it. The injury was caused with a sharp-edged weapon.