RUPI Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant Smt. Rupi in capacity of the victim has filed the instant appeal under Sec. 378 Cr.P.C. against the judgment of acquittal dtd. 30/6/1999 passed by learned Addl. Sessions Judge, Bali, District Pali in Sessions Case No.28/1999 as the victim of the case.

(2.) The prosecution case involves murder of Jeewa, husband of the appellant herein. The incident took place on 9/12/1992 in the village Pratapgarh Jhupa Sadri, District Pali. The FIR No.95/1992 came to be lodged on 11/12/1992 by Rataram S/o Shri Punaji Baori, brother of the deceased, alleging inter alia that on 9/12/1992 at 10:00 AM, he and his his brother Jeewa (the deceased) were sitting at their home. His brother Dudiya arrived there with a lathi and started hurling abuses insinuating that his (the informant"s) cattle were entering the fields and were causing damage to the crops. He also raised a grievance that he was not being allowed to irrigate his field from the well and thus, he would kill the informant. The informant came out of the house and tried to appease Dudiya but he inflicted a lathi blow on his head. Jeewa rushed to save him on which, Dudiya gave two blows of the lathi, one on the neck and one on the back due to which, Jeewa fell down, unconscious. Jeewa's wife, Jeewa's son Heera, wives of informant's brothers Vena and Lala and his mother came there and intervened to save them. The incident was also witnessed by Jassa S/o Shri Roda Baori. They took Jeewa inside the house. No external bleeding was visible and thus, they thought that Jeewa would recover but he did not regain consciousness upon which he was taken to Sadri Hospital. There, they told the doctor that Jeewa had been hit by a bull because the incident was their internal family affair. Jeewa was treated in the hospital for two days but he did not recover and passed away at night. Thereafter, Rataram approached the Police Station and lodged the FIR with the above allegations. The accused Dudiya absconded immediately after the incident. The dead body of Shri Jeewa was subjected to postmortem at the Primary Health Centre, Bali and the medical jurist issued a postmortem report opining that cause of death of Shri Jeewa Ram was coma as a result of head injury. On opening the scalp, the doctor noticed extradural haematoma on left fronto parietal lobe of the brain with fracture of right partietal bone admeasuring 5 x 1/2 inches long starting middle (top) coming towards right ear, both the tables of bone fractured.

(3.) Statement of the appellant herein was recorded under Sec. 161 Cr.P.C. during the course of investigation and she gave positive evidence to the effect that she saw her brother-in-law Dudiya assaulting her husband with a lathi. Her husband became unconscious and fell down on the spot. His mother-in-law and other family members convinced her that it was a family affair and that Jeewa would recover and thus, they should not file a report. Jeewa was taken to the hospital and there too, a false information was given that he had been hit by a bull. However, her husband expired because of the injuries whereafter, she persuaded her brother-in-law to go to the police station for lodging the report.