LACHHUMAN MUNDA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By his order dated the 7th June, 1961, the Second Additional Judicial Commissioner of Ranchi has convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code the appellant for the murder of one unmarried girl named Badam Bhogtain, the sister of Birsa Pradhan (P. W-5) of village Hessel, Police station Khunti in the district of Ranchi. The appellant is also alleged to be of the same place, his house being 20 to 25 steps away from that of Birsa. The appellant has filed this appeal from jail.

(2.) The appellant had worked as Dhanaar (domestic servant) for one year till Majh of 1960 and during that period, he lived in the house of Birsa, where his sister Badan Bhogtain also lived. She was murdered sometime during night intervening the 15th April and 16th April 1960, and the crime was brought to light by the appellant himself at about 6.15 A. M. on the 16th of April 1960 when he appeared in person at the Khunti Police Station before the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Shri Devi Charan Sinha (P. W. 11), who was when the officer-in-charge, being on training. The appellant produced a balua (txt. 1) and gave his statement (Ext. 1/2) which was treated as the first information report. The Deputy Superintendent of Police registered a case and took up the investigation of the case. He found the handle of the balua broken. He noticed some blood stains on the blade and handle with a hair sticking to it. He noticed blood stains also on his dhoti (Ext. VI) and Gamchha (Ext. VII) which the appellant had on his person. He also noticed injuries on his finger. He seized the balum (Ext. 1) with its handle, dhoti (Ext. VI) and Gamcliha (Ext. VII) and prepared a seizure list (Ext. 2/2) in presence of Prafulla Kumar Bhagat (P. W. I) and Chandra Mohan Mishra (P. W. 6). The Deputy Superintendent also prepared an injury report in respect of the injuries on the fingers of the appellant.

(3.) The Deputy Superintendent left the police station at about 8 A. M. along with the appellant in a truck, and from village Pelot they went on foot. The appellant took the Deputy Superintendent to a ditch which was situate in a solitary place on the boundary of village Mahil, about one mile from village Hessel. Some local witnesses were called, and among them were Sahdeo Manjhi (P. W. 2) and Sidam Dam (P. W. 9). The appellant pointed out the dead body of Badan Bhogtain which was lying in a ditch and which was not visible from the village path which was at a distance of about 60 yards. The Deputy Superintendent, who will be hereinafter referred to as 'D. S. P.' held an inquest over the dead body and prepared an inquest report (Ext. 4/2). He found the wearing apparel of the deceased lying around there, all besmeared with blood. Five pieces of bamboo, each about one finger in length, were also found scattered near the dead body. The earth near it was stained with bfood. The D. S. P. scraped and seized from two places blood-stained earth and also seized the bamboo pieces and prepared a seizure list (Ext. 3/2). On going back to the thana, he found on experiment that four of the bamboo pieces, which he had picked up from near the deady (sic) body, exactly fitted in when combined with the broken end of the handle of the axe that had been produced by the appellant earlier at the thana. One of the bamboo pieces slightly covered the sliced portion of the handle of (sic) and that piece had blood-like stains over it. The appellant was kept in thann lock up; but at about 7.15 P. M. he escaped from the 'police station whers he was taken out for answering the call of nature. He was, however, rearrested on the 18th April I960 The D. S. P. examined some witnesses, and on the 2nd May, 1960, he sent in a sealed box the blood stained articles to the Chemical Examiner. They were (1) small pieces of bamboo handle. (2) scrapings from bamboo handle. (3) earth. (4) earth, (5) sari cuttings, (6) dhoti cuttings, (7) towel cuttings (8) sample blood of the deceased, (9) a piece of back hair taken from the balua (ext. I) and (10) some black hairs taken from the head of the deceased The Chemical Examiner's report indicated that there was blood on all the articles and that the hair taken from balua was a human hair, although it could not be said that it was a hair of the similar type as the hairs taken from the head of the deceased. The report (Ext. 10/1). further indicated that with the exception of the small piece of bamboo handle and the hairs, the rest of the articles mentioned above contained human blood, although their group could not be determined except in the case of Sari cutting which were stained with 'O' group blood.