SWAROOPA RAM Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Swaroopa Ram, Sawai Ram and Mahadan Ram accused appellants have filed this appeal under Section 374 (2) Cr.P.C. assailing the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 25-1-2001 delivered by learned Sessions Judge, Jaisalmer in his Sessions Case No. 29/99. By the impugned order the learned Court below while acquitting ten co-accused has convicted these appellants. Under Sections 304-B, 498-A and 201 IPC and awarded each one of them 7 years" RI, 3 years" RI alongwith a fine of Rs. 500.00 and 3 years" RI alongwith a fine of Rs. 500.00 respectively. These appellants have also been acquitted under offence of 302 IPC. #

(2.) Brief facts for disposal of this appeal are that Smt. Poonam aged about 20 years was married to Swaroopa Ram more than a decade before the occurrence. However, her gauna was conducted a couple of years before the occurrence which took place at about 7.00 P.M. on 7-7-1998 at her inlaws house situated in the dhani of Nagaram at the outskirts of village Hadda lying in police station Mohangarh District Jaisalmer. Per chance PW-5 Phusaram, a distant cousin of deceased, happened to be near the place of occurrence in connection with cultivating the fields through tractor of Kirtaram. He came to know that a lady has died in the dhani of Nagaram. Out of curiosity he went into the dhani of Nagaram and came to know that deceased was her cousin sister Poonam. The inlaws reported that she slipped into the water tank and died. When Phusaram removed the odna from the face of deceased he saw blood oozing from her chin and told the inlaws that she has been killed, upon which the inlaws confessed before Phusa-ram. Though Phusaram told them that her cremation be done only after informing her parents and went to his work. However, cremation of Poonam was done hurriedly without informing her parents or the police, therefore, no postmortem could be done on the dead body. #

(3.) Phusaram though a distant cousin has neither informed police nor the parents of Poonam immediately after the occurrence but after two days he went to Jaisalmer. There he per chance met PW-23 Manakaram who was also distantly related to the deceased and disclosed him the factum of Poonam"s death. Manakaram thereafter went to village Mandawa and informed PW-4 Hemaram, father of the girl, who lodged written FIR Ex.P/1 before Superintendent of Police, Jaisalmer on 10-7-1998 which was sent to police station Mohangarh and FIR was registered at 2.30 P.M. on 11-7-1998 under Section 304-B IPC. Accused were apprehended and upon their disclosure statements given under Section 27 of the Evidence Act the cremation place was pointed out from where burnt ash and parts of burnt bones of deceased were seized and sealed and after usual investigation challan under Sections 302, 304-A, 498-A and 201 IPC was filed against 13 persons. #