MAKHAN LAL MASIH Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ACCUSED Makhan Lai Masih was convicted under sec. 302, I. P. C. and sentenced to imprisonment for life by the learned Sessions Judge, Bhilwara by his judgment dated September 21, 1979. He has come up in appeal to challenge his conviction and sentence. The accused has been found guilty for committing the murder of his wife Smt. Soni.

(2.) BRIEFLY stated the case set-up by the prosecution is that the accused is a resident of village Berana P. S. Asind district Bhilwara. He was originally a Hindu belonging to the Scheduled Caste Balai. He renounced Hinduism and ambraced Christianity in 1970. He wanted to convert her to Christianity but Smt. Soni did not oblige him despite his persistent afforts. It is suggested that it sowed the seeds of discordance between them. The Christian Mission gave him a job at Rudki in Uttar Pradesh. He started living there but used to come to his house at Berana after an interval of two or three months. Three children were born to Smt. Soni from him out of whom Kumari Prem is the eldest. She was nearly 9 years in age at the time of the commission of offence (December 1978 ). The accused came from Rudki in December 1978 on the occasion of Christmas Day. In the evening of December 23, 1978 the accused, the victim Smt. Soni, P. W 3 Kumari Prem and other children after taking their meals went to sleep. They slept together in a room of their house shown by mark '2' in the site plan Ex. P. 3. In the early hours of December 24, 1978 the accused awoke his children, left the house and told PW 1 Ku. Prem that her mother had gone to village Babaji-ki-Mandi. The accused first took his children to Babaji-ki-mandi and from there to Asind. At Asind he went to the house of PW 12 Hari Narain who is also a Christian and requested him to keep his children. He also told him that his wife wanted to kill him and bis children and he had brought the children to him with great difficulty. He had brought them so that they might remain Christian. He also told him that his wife wanted the children to remain as Hindus. Hari Narain refused to keep the children. From Asind, the accused took the children to Beawar on the same day and kept them with some Christian family. Smt. Soni used to wear silver Kariyas (Article 1) in her feet. The accused pawned these Kariyas to PW 5 Bhanwar Lal for a sum of Rs. 300/ -. From Beawar he went to Ajmer and returned on December 25, 1978. He picked up his children from Beawar and brought them to Asind. At Asind he left Kumari Prem with her maternal uncle. On the same day at about 4 00 P. M. he presented a written report Ex. P. 11 to the Station House Officer Police Station, Asind. In Ex. P. 11 it was mentioned that his wife Smt. Soni was missing since the evening of December 23, 1978 and her whereabouts could not be ascertained despite all afforts He requested for police help to search her out. The Station House Officer Jabbersingh (PW 13) deputed the Head Constable Abid Hussain (PW 6) and two other constables to accompany the accused to his village Berana and make efforts to search out the missing lady Smt. Soni. The Head Constable and the accused alongwith some police constables reached Berana in the evening of December 25, 1978 and stayed at the house of Mangi Lal (PW 4 ). It is alleged that in the morning of December 26, 1978 the accused told PW 4 Mangi Lal and his brother Udai Lal (PW 1) that he had killed his wife by throttling her and that he had put her deadbody in the new room of his house. PW 1 Udai Lal and PW 4 Mangi Lal informed the Head Constable Abid Hussain (PW 6) accordingly. Thereupon PW 6 Abid Hussain asked the accused about his wife and he (accused) deposed the same facts before him also. The Head Constable Abid Hussain took PW 1 Udai Lal, PW 5 Mangi Lal and the accused to his house. The house was found locked from out-side. The accused opened the lock with the key he was having with him. The Head Constable and the party found the victim's deadbody lying in the room shown by mark '2' in site plan Ex. P. 3. The Head Constable found it a case of murder and wrote his report on the back of Ex. P. 11. He sent it to Police Station, Asind. A case under section 302, I. P. C. was thereupon registered at about 9. 00 A. M. on December 26, 1978. The investigation was taken up by the Station House Officer Jabber Singh (PW 13 ). He arrived on the spot and prepared the inquest report of the victim's deadbody. He also prepared the site plan. The post-mortem examination of the Victim's dead-body was conducted at about 1. 30 P. M. on December 26. 1978 by PW 10 Dr. Dhanraj Panwar, the then Medical Officer Incharge, Primary Health Centre, Asind. He noticed the following injuries: - 1. Bruise 2" x 1-1/2" over right side of nose and cheek blue in colour. 2. Abrasion 2" x 3/4" horisontally over right side of the neck upper third. 3. Abrasion 4" x 2" over back side left lumber region. 4. Abrasion 1" x \" over front side of left shoulder obliquely. 5. Abrasion \" x 1/3" over left side of neck obliquely in the middle. 6. Blister 1/2" x 1/2" superficial blister present over right lumber region back side due to decomposition. Foul smell present. Neck was swollen. On incision there was extravasation of blood in subcutaneous tissue seen on upper third of neck on both the sides. Both the lids were partially closed and congested and pupils on both side were found dialated. Lips and tongue swollen. Tongue bite of J" seen over right margin. Sypothenar and thenar muscles of left hand enter-up by some rats or insects. . . . . Muscles Bones and joints. The muscles of neck aroud truchen and upper third of neck dark in colour lateration was seen on neck muscles. Extravasion of blood in subcutaneous tissue present. There was a fracture of hycid-bone in the neck. " All the injuries were ante mortem. The doctor was of the opinion that the cause of death of Smt. Soni was asphyxis due to strangulation. The post mortem report prepared by him is Ex. P 13. The accused was arrested at about 4. 30 P. M. on December 26, 1978. In consequence of the information furnished by him on December 27, 1978, silver Kariyas (Article 1) were recovered from the shop of PW 5 Bhanwar Lal at Beawar. The silver Kariyas were put to test identification and they were correctly identified by PW 3 Kumari Prem as belonging to her mother. The clothes of the deceased-victim which she were found stained with blood, were also seized and sealed. On Chemical Examination human blood was found on them. On the completion of investigation, the police submitted a challan against the accused in the Court of Munsif and Judicial Magistrate, Gulabpura who in his turn committed the case for trial to the Court of Sessions. The Learned Sessions Judge framed a charge under section 302, I. P. C. against the accused, to which he pleaded not guilty and faced the trial. In his statement under section 313, Cr. P. C. he put forward the defence of complete denial and stated that he has been falsely implicated. In support of its case the prosecution examined 14 witnesses and filed some documents. In defence, the accused examined two witnesses. The evidence addued in defence was to the effect that the relations between the accused and his wife were cordial and sweet. On the conclusion of trial the learned Sessions Jugge held the charge duly brought home to the accused. He was consequently convicted and sentenced as mentioned at the very out set.

(3.) IN assailing the conviction it was vehemently contended by Shri Doonger Singh that the various pieces of circumstantial evidence did not stand proved and even if taken as proved, were not sufficient to give rise to a presumption that Smt. Soni was finished by the accused and none else. It was argued that artificial inferences were drawn from the various links of the circumstantial evidence. The inferences drawn are neither plausible nor logical. IN reply, the learned Public Prosecutor supported the findings of the Court below and submitted that it can be safely inferred from the various sets of evidence that the accused and the accused alone was the perpetrator of the crime. We have bestowed our thoughtful consideration to the respective submissions. We propose to examine each set of evidence and to see whether taken together they are sufficient to raise inferences that the victim was done to death by the accused.