JIYA LAL Vs. STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant has been convicted for committing the murder of his father deceased Nek ram. He has been sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay fine of Rs. 10,000/ - and in default of payment of fine amount to undergo further imprisonment for a period of one year. The prosecution case in brief is that on 5.12.2004 Shri Chaman Lal (PW -2) was returning home from his fields at around 2.30 p.m. for lunch. When he was taking lunch, he heard cries of Nek Ram, he came out and saw that Jiya Lal -accused was having a pair of scissors in his hand and running towards the back yard of the house. Nek Ram had put one hand on his chest and other on the ground trying to support himself. Nek Ram asked him to call his (Nek Ram's) son Ram Singh. Chaman Lal then proceeded to the shop of Ram Singh and informed him that he has been called by his father and thereafter he went to his fields. When this witness returned from his fields at around 6.00 p.m., he was told by Ram Singh that his father had expired. At around 11.00 p.m., Shri Chaman Lal (PW2) telephonically informed Tula Ram (PW1) about the murder of Nek Ram, who thereafter informed the police. On the basis of which rapat, Ex. PW7/A in the daily diary was recorded in police Station Pachad.

(2.) THE learned trial Court on the evidence of 12 witnesses produced by the prosecution and two witnesses by the defence, convicted the accused for the offence as charged. We do not intend to go into the details of the evidence as considered by the learned trial Court but re -appreciate the evidence independently.

(3.) WE now advert to the evidence of PW1 Tula Ram. He was vice president of Kotla Panjola, Panchayat. On 5.1.2004 he was present at Dulanji (Kalaghat) to perform his duty and at around 4.30 p.m. when he was returning home he came to know that Nek Ram had died. On the way Shri Daulat Ram, Pradhan of the Gram Panchayat met him to whom he informed about the death of -Nek Ram and asked him to accompany him to the house of Nek Ram. He says that both of them went there and saw the dead body of Nek Ram in the room covered with a sheet. Tara Devi, Ram Singh and his sister were sitting there. They did not enter the room but they asked about the cause of death of Nek Ram. Tara Devi told them that Nek Ram died due to heart attack. They were also informed that cremation would take place on the next day. They expressed their condolence and left for their house(s). At about 11 p.m. some unknown person rang him and enquired as to whether he was sleeping or not. He replied in the affirmative. He said that murder had taken place in the house which they had visited. He enquired from this unknown informant as to who was the person who committed the murder and he informed that it is Jiya Lal who had killed his father with a pair of scissors. He says that he had received about 20 -24 telephone calls and when he attended them none had responded. During the night, he tried to contact Pradhan on telephone but he was not able to do so. In these circumstances, he called the police at around 4.30 a.m. Thereafter he was able to contact the Pradhan and called him. He accompanied at around 8 a.m. the Pradhan to the house of the deceased. The police had already reached there. The police inspected the dead body and found injury marks on the dead body at various parts particularly on chest and prepared the inquest reports Ex. PW1/A and Ex. PW1/B, which were singed by him and Pradhan Daulat Ram as attesting witnesses. He says that the police also prepared the site plan. On the spot there were chatai (mat) having blood stains and a sickle. Both the sickle and chatai (mat) were taken into possession by the police. The police also took the samples of soil from the place where the soil was scratched as also the scratched blood stained soil which had been found in the back yard of the house. Both the samples of soil were sealed with seal 'S' and taken into possession vide recovery memos Ex. PW1/E and Ex. PW1/F. The scissors was put into a cloth parcel and sealed with seal 'R' by the police and took into possession vide memo Ex. PW1/J which was signed by him as well as by Daulat Ram. He has also been cross -examined at length but we find that there was nothing in his cross -examination to efface the validity/genuineness of what he has stated in his examination -in -chief. There was a suggestion put to this witness about the political rivalry but it does not established from the record.