ABDUL HAKIM Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a jail appeal by accused Abdual Hakim against the judgment of the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Udaipur dated October 24, 1979 convicting the appellant under Sec. 302, IPC, and sentencing him to imprisonment for life with a fine of Rs. 500/ -.

(2.) BRIEFLY stated, the prosecution case is that the deceased victim Mst. Ruqayia was the daughter of the PW 2 Fakir Mohammed and was married to the accused a few days before her murder, which took place on 9-5-1979 in the house of the appellant situate in Keiwa House, Udaipur, It is alleged that the elder sister of the deceased-victim was also married in Udaipur with one Chhote Khan. The accused suspected that Mst. Ruqayia was in illegal intimacy with Chhote Khan. Four or five days before the occurrence, Mst. Ruqayia went to live with her elder sister in the city. She also went with Chhote Khan to Nimbahera and returned from there This further strengthened the accused's suspicion about the infidelity of his wife. On 9-5-79, he went to the house of Chhote Khan and brought his wife back to his house. When he brought her to his house, Mst. Ruqayia asked for a divorce. The accused thereupon bolted the room and struck a number of blows with a dagger to Mst. Ruqayia. She fell down. There was profuse bleeding from her wounds and the clothes she was wearing got stained with it. The injuries proved fatal and she succumbed then and there. The occurrence was seen by the victim's brother Chhota Khan (PW 1 ). After committing the murder of Mst. Ruqayia the accused straightway went to police Station, Ghantaghar and lodged report Exp/ll of the occurrence at about 12. 40 P. M. on that very day. The police registered a case and arrested the accused. The SHO Rameshwar Lal (PW 7) arrived on the spot and prepared the inquest report of the victim's dead body. It may be mentioned that when the accused went to the police station, he was having a dagger with him. When he was arrested, the dagger was siezed and sealed. The Investigation Officer inspected the site and prepared the site plan. The post-mortem examination of the victim's dead body was conducted at about 3. 45 P. M. by Medical Jurist Dr. D. S. Chaudhary (PW 5 ). He found the following injuries on the victim's body : - (1) Incised wound over left breast over arelo inferior chippie horizontal in directions 1 x 0. 2 c. m. x skin deep. Margins are clean cut. (2) Incised wound over right breast 5 c. m. medial to the nipple 1 x 0. 3 c. m. x skin deep. Margins are clean cut. (3) Two incised wounds over left arm upper l/3rd laterally one is horizontal other is vertical L 1 x 0. 5 c. m. x skin to muscle deep. (4) Stab wound over left side of chest oblique in direction (inferiority to exilla) 2 x 0. 5 cm. Depth described on further dissection. (5) Incised wound over left buttock 1. 2 x 0. 3 c. m. x skin deep. Margins are clean cut. (6) Incised wound over right thigh posteriorly upper l/3rd 1 x 0. 5 c. m. x skin deep. Margins are clean cut. (7) Incised wound over right thigh latterally upper l/3rd 1. 5 x 0. 5 cm. x skin deep. Margins are clean cut.

(3.) PW 4 Mst. Alia Rakhi is the mother of the appellant. She also deposed that on the day of incident, the accused brought his wife Mst. Ruqayia from the house of her elder sister. Both of them went together in a room. All of a sudden, she heard the cries. Many persons collcted there. Mst. Ruqayia was found lying badly injured in that room. Though she was declared hostile by the prosecution, she admitted that the accused and the victim came together to her house and went in the room in the first floor. Thereafter, the deceased raised cries. In these circumstances, when the accused and the victim were together in that room, a natural inference arises that it was he and he alone who had put the victim to death. The accused was arrested as soon as he lodged the First Information Report Ex. P/ll. He was found having a dagger with him. The dagger was blood stained. This also affords a very valuable corroboration to the testimony of PW 1 Chhote Khan.