RAM MEHAR Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SHRI Ram Mehar son of Munshi Ram, a young person of 32 years at the time of his conviction has filed the present criminal appeal and has been directed against the judgment and order dated 23.4.1987 passed by the court of Sessions Judge, Sonepat who convicted the appellant under section 302 I.P.C. and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of four years and to pay a fine of Rs. 300/-. In default of payment of fine he was directed to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three months.

(2.) THE brief facts of the case are that accused Ram Mehar faced a charge under Sections 302 and 301 of the Indian Penal Code while his wife Smt. Krishna faced a charge under section 201 of the Indian Penal Code. Both of them pleaded not guilty to the charge and claimed a trial. The story of the prosecutions runs as under :- The deceased in this case is one Hoshiar Singh son of Shri Baru, a Teli by profession and he belonged to village Khidwali District Rohtak. The offences are alleged to have been committed within the area of village Bhainswal Kalan, District Rohtak. According to the prosecution, Hoshiar Singh alias Hoshiara deceased took away Rs. 6,000/- from his home for the purpose of purchasing a buffalo. He came to the house of his sister Smt. Roshni and her husband Shri Ali Sher (PW.12) at village Pipli Khera which is about 10/12 kilometres away from village Bhainswal Kalan. He reached his sister's home on 22.6.1986. Ali Sher sold his buffalo for a sum of Rs. 4,000/- to him and issued him a receipt Ex.PF for the purpose of transit (rahdari). The receipt was executed by Shri Ali Sher PW. It also bore the thumb impression of Hoshiar Singh deceased and attested by Ved Singh Sarpanch of the village. The deceased kept the receipt Ex.PF and the remaining cash in a purse and started for his village with the buffalo on 23.6.1986. A Mohri Ex.P.6 was tied to the buffalo. Accused Ram Mehar has built his residential kotha in his field at outskirts of the village. The deceased plodded the distance between village Pipli Khera and Bhainswal Kalan during the day. He came to the kotha of accused Ram Mehar in the evening. Smt. Krishna accused was present there. The deceased requested her for shelter for the night. She provided him meals and gave him a cot to rest in the night. The buffalo was tethered nearby. It was at that time that Shri Amar Singh Sarpanch of village Bhainswal (PW.13) happened to pass that way. He saw the deceased lying on the cot outside the house of accused Ram Mehar with buffalo tied nearby. He also saw accused Krishna doing her household work. Ram Mehar came from out-station back in the evening. He made enquiries from Smt. Krishna accused as to why and how the deceased was there. He searched the person of the deceased when he was asleep and found Rs. 1,800/- in his pocket. Ram Mehar took a kassi and killed the deceased with same. He cut his body into pieces. He dug a pit in his field which adjoins his kotha and buried the dead body alongwith the clothes thereof which consisted of chaddar Ex.P.1, Dhoti Ex.P.2 and shirt Ex.P.3. He removed the cash and purse Ex.P.7. The purse contained receipt Ex.PF. Thereafter, he placed the blood stained kassi Ex.P.4, blood stained cot Ex.P.5, empty purse Ex.P.7 contained receipt Ex.PF and Mohri Ex.P.6 in his kotha and locked the same. He let the buffalo loose which roamed about in the village. The next day it was seized by the panchayat. A munadi was held and since no person came to claim the buffalo, it was entrusted to one Tara till the actual owner of the buffalo came forward to claim it. Accused Ram Mehar also watered his field where the dead body had been buried. After sometime, the dead body was dug out by stray dogs and it started giving foul smell. It is also the story of the prosecution that the wife and brother of Shri Hoshiar deceased became apprehensive about the well being of Hoshiara deceased when he failed to return home for about a week. Shri Jaga Ram P.W.10, elder brother of the deceased and Shri Sube Singh (PW.11) wife's brother of the deceased came out in search of the deceased. Finally they came to the house of Shri Ali Sher PW at village Pipli Khera. On enquiries, Ali Sher told them about the deceased having purchased the buffalo from him and his having left the village alongwith the buffalo on 23.6.1986. Shri Jage Ram (PW.10), Shri Sube Singh (PW.11) and Shri Ali Sher (PW.14) carried out the search of the deceased for about a fortnight. It was then that they came to know that the buffalo was taken away by Hoshiara deceased at village Bhainswal. They came there and found the buffalor tethered at the house of Tara who demanded Rs. 150/- on account of expenses for upkeep of the buffalo. The buffalo was left with Shri Sube Singh of Village Katwal and all of them went to their respective houses. After a few days more, i.e. on 16.7.1986, Sube Singh PW came to know that a dead body was lying burried in the field at village Bhainswal and its clothes were visible. Sube Singh and Jage Ram reached the field which belonged to the accused. They found the dead body lying under the earth in the field of jawar. Bad smell was coming out of it and clothes thereon were visible. Sube Singh went to village and brought Zile Singh, Munshi Ram and Amar Singh chowkidar of the said village.

(3.) THE investigation was further carried out by S.I. Raj Kumar. The Investigating Officer searched for the accused but their kotha nearby the place of recovery was found to be locked. It is the case of the State that these two accused persons went to Pirthi Singh Lambardar of village Khidwali on 25.7.1986 and they made an extra judicial confession as regards the shelter given by Krishna to the deceased. It was also confessed by these people that the deceased was carrying Rs. 1,800/- in cash with him and that Ram Mehar appellant had murdered the deceased with a kassi and robbed him of the said amount. Thereafter, both the accused i.e. Ram Mehar and his wife Krishna buried his dead body inside the field underneath the ground and later on the dogs dug out the dead body and spread foul smell. The two accused persons Ram Mehar and his wife stayed with Pirthi Singh PW for the night and he produced them before S.I. Raj Kumar on 26.7.1986. They were arrested. Ram Mehar accused was interrogated in the presence of Ali Sher and Zile Singh PW, disclosed that the had kept concealed one kassi, one cot, a purse and a Mohri in the kotha in his field and he could get the same recovered by pointing out the place of concealment. The statement was signed by Ram Mehar appellant and attested by Ali Sher and Zile Singh PWs. Then accused led the police party to his kotha and produced a key from underneath a chaukhat of the room. He opened the lock and produced a Mohri, a purse, blood stained cot and a blood stained kassi. These articles were seized and were taken into possession. The cot and kassi were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory and on receipt of report to the effect that both were stained with blood, challan under sections 302 and 302/201 I.P.C. was filed in the court of Area Magistrate who supplied copies of the documents as required under law and committed the case to the court of Sessions vide commitment order dated 26.9.1986. Vide order dated 25.10.1986 learned Sessions Judge, Sonepat framed a charge under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code against Shri Ram Mehar and his wife Krishna. Charges were read over and explained to the accused to which they pleaded not guilty and claimed a trial.