STATE OF RAJASTHAN Vs. SAWAI SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This murder reference and the appeal arise out of the judgment dated (September 6, 1991, passed by the Additional District and Sessions Judge No. 1, Jodhpur, I by which the learned Additional Sessions Judge convicted and sentenced the accused-I appellant Sawai Singh for the offence under Section 302, IPC.

(2.) Accused-appellant Sawai Singh was tried by the learned Additional Sessions Judge No. 1, Jodhpur, for committing the murders of his two brothers Mangu Singh and Bhanwar Singh on May, 13, 1989, in the open place near village Kaliberi. On May 15, 1989, the First Information Report was lodged at Police Station, Mandore, by one Jai Singh. It was averred in the First Information Report that Ram Lal, who had gone to clear the call of the nature, found two deadbodies in the decomposed conditions near the boundary-wall of his field. On the basis of this report, the police registered the case, recovered the deadbodies and the clothes from the deadbodies as well as lying near the deadbodies. Thereafter the postmortem examinations of those two deadbodies were conducted by PW 14 Dr. Dharmendra Sharma. On May 19, 1989, Hukam Singh-father of the deceased-lodged an FIR Ex.P.7 at Police Station Mandore. The police, after necessary investigation, presented the challan against the accused and the accused Sawai Singh was tried by the learned Additional Sessions Judge No. 1, Jodhpur, for the offence under Section 302 IPC. The learned Additional Sessions Judge, after trial, convicted the accused under Section 302 IPC. and sentenced him to death and submitted the proceedings to this Court under Section 366(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure for confirmation of the sentence of death passed against the accused Sawai Singh. This petition for confirmation of the sentence was registered as D.B. Criminal Murder Reference No. 1 of 1991. The accused Sawai Singh, also, preferred an appeal through jail.

(3.) The prosecution, in support of its case, examined twenty- three witnesses and exhibited twenty documents. The accused did not produce any evidence in support of his defence and exhibited only one documents. The nature of the evidence, produced by the prosecution, consists of PW 1 Ram Lal, who had first seen the two deadbodies near the boundary-wall of his field in the open place when he had gone to clear the call of the nature. PW 2 Jai Singh is the witness, who had lodged the First Information Report Ex.P.1 at Police Station, Madore, He is also, a Motbir witness regarding Ex.P.1 to Ex. P.6. PW 3 Hukam Singh (father of the deceased as well as the accused) and PW 7 Bahadur Singh (uncle of the accused) are the two witnesses, before whom the accused confesses his guilt. PW 6 Smt. Vimla and PW 4 Poonam Nath are the two witnesses regarding the last-seen of the deceased in the company of the accused. To corroborate the testimony of these two witnesses, i.e., PW 6 Smt. Vimla and PW 4 Poonam Nath regarding the last seen of the accused in the company of the deceased, the prosecution has, also, placed reliance on the statement of PW 5 Roop Singh and PW 3 Hukam Singh on this point, to whom Smt. Vimla informed on the next date of the going of Mangu Singh and Bhanwar Singh with accused Sawai Singh. PW 8 Gumna Ram is the shop- keeper, from whom the accused used to purchase house-hold goods, PW 9 Nar Singh is the Miner, with whom the accused Sawai Singh used to work. PW 11 Jai Singh, PW 12 Prem Singh and PW 15 Chater Singh are the Motbir witnesses, in whose presence various Memos like Ex.P.2, Ex.P.3, Ex.P.6 and Ex.P.10 were prepared. PW 21 Gokul Ram and PW 22 Balwant Singh are the two witnesses of the recovery of the blood-stained stone, by which the accused- appellant alleged to have killed the deceased Mangu Singh and Bhanwer Singh. Ex.P.14 is the recovery memo of the stone and of the diary and Ex.P.15 is the site plan, of the field from where the stone was recovered. PW 14 is Dr. Dharmendra, who has conducted the post-mortems on the deadbodies of deceased Mangu Singh and Bhanwar Singh. PW 18 is Smt. Mangi Devi, in whose house Roop Singh-the brother of PW 3 Hukam Singh-is residing as a tenant. This witness has not supported the prosecution case and was declared hostile. The remaining are the police-witnesses, who were connected with the investigation or the registration of the reports, PW 10 Dalpat Singh was the Head Constable posted at Police Station,' Mandore, with whom the Articles Ex.D.1, Ex.D.2, Ex.E,1 and Ex.E.2 were deposited on May 15, 1989 and which remained in his possession and the seals on them remained intact during the period them articles remained with him till they were sent for chemical examination. PW 13 Ota Ram was the Station House Officer, Police Station, Soorsagar, who registered the FIR Ex.P.1 on May 15,1989, regarding the two deaths occurred in the out-skirt of village Paldi. PW 16 Mota Ram was the Station House Officer, Police Station, Soorsagar, on May 19, 1989, before whom the written report Ex.P.7 was produced by Prabhu Ram Constable, who was sent to Police Station, Mandore, and on the basis of which the case No. 42/1989 under Section 302 IPC was registered and the FIR Ex.P.11 was recorded. PW 17 is Pooran Singh, Station House Officer, Police Station, Mandore, who conducted the investigation. PW 19 Jeet Singh was the Assistant Sub-Inspector posted at Police Station, Mandore, in whose presence, on May 20, 1989, accused Sawai Singh was arrested and the arrest memo Ex.P.12 was prepared. He is a witness to Ex.P.12, also. PW 20 is Tej Singh Constable, who is a witness to Ex.P.2 HAALAT MOKA and Ex. P.3 NAKSHA MOKA. PW 22 Balwant Singh Constable is a witness to the recovery of the stone Ex.P.2 and the site plan Ex.P.15. PW 23 Prabhu Singh is a Constable, who was posted at Police Station, Mandore, who took the sealed packets Ex.D. 1, Ex.D.2, Ex.E.1 and Ex.E.2 for FSL Examination to the State Forensic Science Laboratory, Jaipur, and who took the articles in a sealed condition and handed them over to the State Forensic Science Laboratory, Jaipur in the sealed condition.