MOTILAL PURANSAO Vs. EMPEROR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) MOTILAL , his brother Mojilal, and Saktya, their servant, and Jhullu, Benya and Sudama were tried in the Court of the Additional Sessions Judge, Balaghat, on the charge of murdering one Ghudnya, son of Langdya Mahar of village Datta on the night of 10th February 1939 and also of robbing him of his ornaments-offences punishable respectively under Sections 302 and 396, read with Section 34, I.P.C. Motilal, Mojilal and Saktya were convicted of both the offences and the first two were sentenced to death subject to confirmation by this Court and also to transportation for life; Saktya was sentenced to transportation for life and five years' rigorous imprisonment which was to run concurrently, and the others were acquitted. Motilal and Mojilal have preferred a joint appeal, Criminal Appeal No. 215 of 1939, and Saktya filed a separate appeal, Criminal Appeal No. 219 of 1939. This judgment governs the disposal of both.

(2.) THE deceased Ghudnya worked as a labourer on the field of Motilal and Mojilal. He was the only son of his father and had been married two years before his murder. He was in the habit of wearing three gold ear-rings and a pair of silver kadas on his wrist. On Friday, 10th February 1939, he and his wife worked as usual in the field of Motilal and Mojilal and returned in the evening. He took his meals along with his father and then left his house. At midnight when his wife got up from sleep and found that Ghudnya had not returned home she woke up her father-in-law. They made search for him in the night but in vain. The search made on the next day also proved fruitless. On Sunday, that is 12th February 1939, one Gopal brought the news that a bloodstained cloth was seen in the field of one Bhola Kumbhar. The deceased's father and his wife went to the field and discovered the trunk of a dead body which was kept away in the recess of an embankment of Bhola Kumbhar's field. The head was missing. They forthwith reported the matter to the Mukaddam Anantsing stating that on Friday Ghudnya after taking his meals had left his house at about 10 o'clock and that he had three gold balis (ear-rings) weighing 11/4 tola worth Rs. 42-8-0 and two silver kadas weighing 7 tolas worth Rupees

(3.) THE ornaments produced by Motilal were identified by the deceased's father Langdya (P.W. 9) and his wife Bunda (P.W. 11) as well as Nandram, goldsmith, (P.W. 16), the goldsmith who had made the ornaments, Kanhaiya (P.W. 13), Arjun (P.W. 15) and Suratsingh, malguzar (P.W. 19), testified that Ghudnya was in the habit of wearing three ear-rings and two kadas. Mojilal denied knowledge of the ornaments belonging to Ghudnya. Motilal however pleaded that they had belonged to his deceased father and that he had buried them in his house to conceal them from his brother Mojilal because he had already unjustly appropriated all the ornaments of their mother. Motilal however did not give any evidence to substantiate his plea. The articles were sent to the Chemical Examiner and the Imperial Serologist. The Chemical Examiner detected blood on the iron axe blade and the iron file recovered from Motilal by applying benzidine test, but the presence of blood could not be confirmed by the spectroscopic method. He detected bloodstains by spectroscopic test on dhoti, bandi and the handle of the axe recovered from Motilal and two shirts recovered from Mojilal and the dhoti and shirt recovered from Saktya, The Serologist was unable to determine the origin of the bloodstains as they were disintegrated. Both Motilal and Mojilal admitted that Saktya and the other accused (acquitted) were their servants, but they denied the commission of the crime. Saktya however admitted that Motilal, Mojilal, Ghudnya and himself assembled near the hillock towards the river and that Motilal murdered Ghudnya and stripped him of his ornaments and kept them to himself. Although he admitted his presence he was cautious enough to deny that he took part in committing the murder. The assessors unanimously gave their opinion that Motilal and Mojilal were guilty of murder and robbery. In regard to Saktya one of the four assessors declared him guilty of 'both the offences, while the rest declared him not guilty.