MAHENDRA KUMAR Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal has been preferred against the judgment dated 21.4.1993 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Bali, who convicted appellant-Mahendra Kumar for the offence under section 304 Part-lI IPC and sentenced him to undergo seven years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 500/- in default to further undergo R.I. for three months and also convicted appellant-Smt. Pepi for the offence under Section 304 Part-Il read with Section 114 IPC and sentenced her to undergo rigorous imprisonment for four years and a fine of Rs. 1000/- in default to further undergo six months R.I.

(2.) Stated in succinct the relevant facts are that deceased-Umed Mal had original sons, P.W. 3 Prakash, P.W. 14 Mitha Lal and appellant Mahendra Kumar, Prakash was married long back. His younger son P.W. 14 Mitha Lal aged about 24 years was unmarried. Appellant-Mahendra Kumar was younger to him and there was a proposal for his marriage. Deceased-Umed Mal desired that Mitha Lal should be married first. But, appellant-Mahendra Kumar and his mother appellant-Smt. Pepi insisted that the betrothal ceremony of Mahendra Kumar be performed early. It is the case of the prosecution that Umed Mal and appellant-Smt. Pepi used to often quarrel over family matters. On 17.6.1992 at about 11.30 A.M., a quarrel started between deceased-Umed Mal and his wife Smt. Pepi. The latter sent her grand-son Dinesh to call appellant-Mahendra Kumar. It is alleged that Mahendra Kumar came to his house and in the p01 thereof he picked up quarrel with his father Umed Mal and at the instance of Smt. Pepi he started beating Umed Mal by a wooden rod (Soti), which is used for washing clothes. Smt. Pepi closed the doors of the house. On hearing hue and cry, P.W. 12 Bhopal Singh, P.W. 13 Khim Singh and other neighbourers assembled there. It is alleged that Bhopal Singh peeped from the crevices of the door and saw that appellant-Mahendra Kumar was inflicting soti blows to his father-Umed Mal, who was lying on the Cot, that blood was oozing out from the latters mouth, nose and ear and that Smt. Pepi was exhorting appellantMahendra Kumar to beat the deceased. P.W. 13 Khim Singh then went into the house of the appellants by scaling over the boundary wall of neighbour Onkardas and opened the doors of the p01. Umed Mal, who had received injuries on his head, had become unconscious. He was immediately taken to the Government Hospital, Bali in a tractor, thereafter, in a Jeep, where he was declared dead.

(3.) Bhopal Singh lodged a written report Ex. P.15 on the same day at about 3.00 p.m. at Police Station, Bali, whereupon P.W. 20 Jog Singh, S.H.O. drew the formal FIR Ex. P.21. Jog Singh reached the place of occurrence and prepared site plan and the memo thereof Ex. P.1, memo of the dead body of Umed Mal Ex. P.2, autopsy report Ex.P.3 and seized the blood stained Chadar (Rali) on which the dead body of Umed Mal was lying on the Cot vide seizure memo Ex. P.4. He also got the dead body of Umed Mal lying on the cot photographed vide photographs Exs. P. 10 to P. 12.