IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD CRIMINAL APPEAL No. 692 of 2007 For Approval and Signature:
HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR.BHASKAR BHATTACHARYA HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA ========================================================= 1 Whether Reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment ?
2 To be referred to the Reporter or not ?
3 Whether their Lordships wish to see the fair copy of the judgment ?
4 Whether this case involves a substantial question of law as to the interpretation of the constitution of India, 1950 or any order made thereunder ?
5 Whether it is to be circulated to the civil judge ?
========================================================= RAKESHBHAI KANTIBHAI PARMAR - Appellant(s) Versus STATE OF GUJARAT & 1 - Opponent(s) ========================================================= Appearance :
MR PB GOSWAMI for Appellant(s) : 1, MR KP RAVAL, APP for Opponent(s) : 1, ========================================================= HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE CORAM :
MR.BHASKAR BHATTACHARYA and HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA Date : 06/09/2012 CAV JUDGMENT (Per : HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA) The present Appeal is at the instance of a convict accused for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, and is directed against an order of conviction and sentence dated 30th March 2007, passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Bharuch in Sessions Case No.66 of 2006. By the aforesaid order, the learned Additional Sessions Judge found the appellant guilty of the offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and consequently, sentenced him to suffer Life Imprisonment and a fine of Rs.3000/-. In default of payment of fine, the appellant was directed to undergo further Simple Imprisonment for three months.
I. Case of the Prosecution :
(i) The wife of the deceased, named Pushpaben PW.2, lodged a First Information Report on 28th May 2006 at 20:25 hours with Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station stating that she was residing at the address shown in the FIR past 2 years along with her husband – the deceased and her one year old son, named Sagar. The first informant further stated that her husband – the deceased was going to Ankleshwar GIDC for labour work and from such income they used to maintain their livelihood.
(ii) On 28th May 2006 the first informant was at home since morning in company of her husband - the deceased and her son. At around 2:15 in the afternoon her husband – the deceased told the first informant that he would be returning home in a short time after buying 'Vimal Gutkha', and also asked the first informant to keep food ready for being served. According to the first informant, saying so, the deceased left the home and thereafter at around 2:30 in the afternoon the first informant heard shouts of people from a temple situated at Yogeshwarnagar i.e. place where the first informant and her family were residing. On hearing the shouts the first informant came out of her house. Her sister-in-law Geetaben and Geetaben's husband along with her father- in-law and mother-in-law came out of their house and saw that the accused, a resident of village Andada, was inflicting injuries on the rear portion of the head of the deceased with an iron pipe.
(iii) According to the first informant, all of them ran at the place of incident. At that point of time, the accused is alleged to have inflicted a second injury on the left ear of the deceased as a result of which the husband of the first informant fell down and the accused thereafter ran away from the scene of offence with an iron pipe in his hand.
(iv) According to the first informant, her husband - the deceased was bleeding profusely and fell down unconscious. Thereafter the first informant, her in-laws and her sister-in-law took the deceased to the Civil Hospital at Bharuch where the doctor declared the husband of the first informant dead.
(v) The first informant in her report has alleged that the motive behind the commission of the crime is that two days before the date of the incident, the deceased had reprimanded the accused saying that the accused should not visit the house of the deceased. On this issue there was some altercation and keeping spite, on 28th May 2006 the accused inflicted serious injuries on the head of the deceased.
(vi) It appears that the Head Constable, Incharge at Bharuch Civil Hospital, named, Jesingbhai Somabhai, Buckle No.1034, informed the Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station by a Wardhi about the incident and in turn Wardhi Exh.33 was prepared at 18:30 hours on the same day asking to prepare for drawing of the Inquest Panchnama and other legal proceedings with respect to the incident in question. The scene of offence panchnama was drawn, inquest panchnama was also drawn, the dead body of the deceased was sent for Postmortem Examination and the Postmortem Examination revealed that the cause of death of the deceased was due to cardio respiratory arrest as a result of head injury.
(vii) On 30th May 2006 the accused was arrested, the panchnama of the person of the accused was drawn at Exh.17, clothes worn by the accused were changed and were taken in possession. Thereafter, a discovery panchnama of the weapon of offence was drawn at Exh.18 under which the accused is said to have pointed out the place where the iron pipe used in the commission of offence was concealed by the accused. The muddamal articles were seized and were sent to Forensic Science Laboratory for chemical analysis. Finally, charge-sheet was filed against the accused in the Court of JMFC, Ankleshwar. Statements of various witnesses were recorded by the Investigating Officer.
(viii) As the case was exclusively triable by the Sessions Court, the JMFC, Ankleshwar committed the case to the Sessions Court under Section 209 Cr.P.C. The Sessions Court framed charge against the accused Exh.7 and statement of the accused was recorded. The accused did not admit the charge and claimed to be tried.
The prosecution adduced the following oral evidence in support of its case.
PW.1 Sureshbhai Bhikhabhai Solanki. Exh.10 (Panch witness to the scene of offence panchnama) PW.2 Pushpaben Kailasbhai - Exh.20 First Informant - Wife of the deceased -
one of the eye-witnesses.
Circle Inspector who prepared the map of the place of occurrence PW.8 Chhaganbhai Ranchhodbhai Vasava - Exh.36 2nd Panch witness of Panchnama of discovery of weapon and clothes.
PW.9 Manilalbhai Karsanbhai - Exh.37 Brother-in-law of the deceased -
One of the eye witnesses.
PW.10 Hirenbhai Ashokbhai Patel - Exh.38 Independent witness running a shop near the place of occurrence.
PW.11 Balwantbhai Manabhai Patel - I.O. Exh.39 PW.12 Jayprakash Dayaljibhai Sutariya Exh.41 - 2nd I.O.
The following pieces of documentary evidence were adduced by the prosecution.
1) Panchnama of the scene of offence. Exh.13
2) Original complaint. Exh.15
3) Arrest Panchnama of the accused and Exh.17 the panchnama of the person of accused.
4) Discovery Panchama of weapon. Exh.18
5) Inquest Panchnama. Exh.23
6) Panchnama of clothes of the deceased. Exh.24
7) Postmortem Note. Exh.26
8) Death Certificate of the deceased. Exh.28
9) Map of the place of occurrence. Exh.35
10) FSL Report Exh.44 After completion of oral as well as documentary evidence of the prosecution, the statement of the accused under Section 313 of Criminal Procedure Code was recorded, in which the accused stated that the complaint was a false one and he was innocent.
At the conclusion of the trial, the learned trial Judge convicted the accused for the offence under Section 302 of IPC and sentenced him as stated herein before.
Being dissatisfied, the accused-appellant has come-up with the present Appeal.
II. Oral Evidence on record :
(i) The prosecution has examined PW.1, Sureshbhai Solanki, Exh.10. This witness is one of the panch witnesses of the scene of offence panchnama – Exh.13. This witness in his cross-examination has deposed that at the place of incident there are lots of wild trees. At the temple of Bhathiji there is a 'Pakka Otta' admeasuring 20” x 30”. This witness has further deposed that behind the temple there are houses in a line at a distance of around 50 ft. This witness deposed that near a tree there is a temple and house of Pushpaben i.e. first informant is behind the houses which are in one line. This witness has further deposed that standing at the house of Pushpaben - the first informant, one cannot see the temple as there are houses in front of the house of the first informant.
(ii) The prosecution has also examined PW.2, Pushpaben, Exh.14 – the first informant and wife of the deceased. This witness has deposed that on the date of the incident she was at her home. The incident occurred at around 2 O’clock in the afternoon. Her husband – the deceased told her to keep the food ready as he would return home after buying 'Vimal Gutkha'. PW.2 has further deposed that the deceased was having 'Gutkha' sitting at the 'otta' of the temple. On hearing the shouts of her husband - the deceased, she came out of her house and went near the temple. PW.2 witnessed the accused assaulting her husband – the deceased. According to PW.2 the accused had an iron pipe in his hand. She has deposed that the accused inflicted injuries on the head of her husband – the deceased. She identified the accused sitting in the Court room as the one who inflicted injuries on the head of her husband – the deceased. She also identified the muddamal article no.7, the iron pipe, with which the accused had inflicted injuries on the head of her husband - the deceased. She further deposed that at that relevant point of time, her father-in-law, sister-in-law, brother-in- law and others came running at the spot of occurrence and thereafter, the accused ran away. Thereafter her husband - the deceased was lifted and brought at their house. After some time her husband - the deceased was taken to Civil Hospital. The doctor at the Civil Hospital, on examination, declared her husband – the deceased to be dead. PW.2 thereafter lodged a First Information Report at around 20:25 hours at Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station Exh.15. She has further deposed that between her house and the place of occurrence there is a locality of residential houses. She has deposed that the place of occurrence from her house is at a distance of around 50 ft. She deposed that the accused was coming at her house past 2 days. This was brought by her to the notice of her husband – the deceased and asked her husband – the deceased to speak to the accused not to visit their house. PW.2 has further deposed that as the accused was reprimanded by her husband – the deceased in this regard, out of vengeance the accused assaulted her husband – the deceased. This witness in her cross- examination has deposed that she lodged FIR at the time when her husband – the deceased was being taken to the dispensary. The FIR was recorded at the hospital by a Constable. She has further deposed that a police official of Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station came and recorded the First Information Report. She further deposed that it was not true that in her first information report she had not stated that she had asked her husband – the deceased to speak to the accused that the accused should not visit their house. She further deposed that her husband – the deceased was assaulted from behind and the deceased fell down from the 'otta' of the temple. She has further deposed that when she reached at the place of occurrence her husband - the deceased was lying on the ground and was bleeding profusely from the head. She deposed that the locality of residential houses is at a distance of around 100 ft. from the temple. There are around 10 houses in a line in the said locality and the house of this witness is behind the last house of the said locality. She has further deposed that if she gets out of her house, then her face would be towards the wild trees and not towards the temple. She has denied the suggestion that when she reached at the place of occurrence many people had gathered over there. She has deposed that her husband – the deceased was lying on the ground and she reached at the said place. After PW.2 reached, the other people arrived at the place of incident. She denied the suggestion that in her first information report she had not stated that injuries were inflicted from behind. This witness denied the suggestion that her husband – the deceased was in an intoxicated state of mind and as he fell down from the 'otta' the edge of the 'otta' hit the head resulting in the injuries.
(iii) Prosecution has examined PW.3, Bharatbhai Rajput, Exh.16. This witness is one of the panch witnesses of the discovery of weapon and the recovery of clothes of the accused. The evidence of this witness is not of much significance as this witness failed to prove the panchnama and was declared hostile.
(iv) Prosecution has examined PW.4, Dr.Vijaykumar Parmar, Exh.25. This witness is a Medical Officer and on the date of incident i.e. on 28th May 2006, he was serving at Bharuch Civil Hospital. This witness has deposed that on 28th May 2006 at around 10:15 hours in the night PSI of Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station brought the dead body of the deceased for Postmortem Examination. Postmortem was performed on the next day at around 6:45 in the morning. This witness has deposed that following injuries were noticed on the body of the deceased:
(a) Contused Lacerated Wound 8 x 2 cm Bone deep, horizontal on left side of occipital region. Fresh blood was oozing from the wound.
(b) CLW 3 x ½ cm Skin deep horizontal on left ear. 5 cm swelling with softness and depression of occipital region.
This witness has further deposed that the occipital bone was broken in small pieces. This witness has deposed that the cause of death was due to cardio respiratory arrest as a result of haemorrhage due to head injury. This witness further deposed that the injury could be possible by muddamal Article no.7 – iron pipe alleged to have been used in commission of the offence. This witness has further deposed that the dead body of the deceased was brought at Bharuch Hospital at around 10 O’clock in the night. The dead body was brought by the PSI. This witness has further deposed that when he was in his chamber at around 10 O’clock PSI of Ankleshwar Police Station came with the dead body. He has further deposed that he has not expressed any opinion in the Postmortem report as to how many hours before the deceased must have died from the time of performing of the postmortem. This witness has also deposed that in the postmortem report there is no reference of time of death as well as the time of last meal taken by the deceased. This witness has proved the Certificate Exh.28 regarding performing of Postmortem examination.
(v) Prosecution has also examined PW.5, Geetaben Manilal, Exh.29. This witness is the sister of the deceased. This witness has deposed that she is residing at Yogeshwarnagar. This witness has deposed that Kailasbhai – the deceased was also residing at Yogeshwarnagar. She deposed that the incident occurred at around 2 O’clock in the afternoon and at that point of time she was at her house. At the time of incident her son was sleeping and her husband was also present. According to her, the incident occurred opposite the temple of Bhathiji. She has deposed that her sister-in-law i.e. PW.2 shouted and that is how she ran at the place and witnessed the accused assaulting the deceased on the head with an iron pipe. She identified the person sitting in the Court room as the accused who assaulted her brother - the deceased. She has further deposed that the accused is also residing near their house. She has deposed that when she reached the place of occurrence, the accused had ran away. She has thereafter deposed that she had witnessed the accused assaulting the deceased three times on the head. She has further deposed that thereafter her brother – the deceased was brought at his house, a rickshaw was called and her brother – the deceased was taken to Bharuch Civil Hospital. On examination, the doctor declared her brother – the deceased to be dead. This witness has further deposed that the accused inflicted injuries on her brother - the deceased as her sister-in-law i.e. PW.2 did not like the accused visiting her house and her sister-in- law must have told about it to her brother - the deceased. She has further deposed that they reached the hospital after around 5 to 6 hours. At the hospital, a Police Constable of Ankleshwar came and recorded statement. She has further deposed that as her brother – the deceased died, the dead body was kept at the hospital. She has denied the suggestion that the deceased was taken to the hospital at around 10 O'clock in the night. This witness has further deposed that the weapon with which her brother – the deceased was assaulted was a 'Parai' which was flat from the top. She has further deposed that the weapon was not an iron pipe. She deposed that her sister-in-law PW.2 was crying at the temple and was shouting. Nobody came from the neighbourhood. She has further deposed that there are lots of wild trees at Yogeshwarnagar. There is no Pakka road at Yogeshwarnagar. There are houses of Harijans near the temple and behind the houses of Harijans the house of this witness is situated. She denied the suggestion that her house from the temple is at a distance of 200 to 250 ft. She deposed that her house from temple is at around 100 ft. This witness has further deposed that her husband is a Watchman. On the date of the incident he had come after performing duty in the night-shift and had gone off to sleep. Her son had also gone off to sleep and did not wake-up at the time of the incident. She has deposed that it is true that she had stated before the Police that at around 2 O’clock in the afternoon after having lunch everyone had gone off to sleep. She deposed that she ran at the place of occurrence on hearing the shouts of her sister-in-law PW.2. She has deposed that when she reached at the place she found her brother – the deceased in a pool of blood lying on the ground. When she reached at the place of occurrence there was no one besides her sister-in-law PW.2. She has deposed that her sister-in-law PW.2 told her about the accused. She has deposed that it is true that from the house of her sister-in-law PW.2 the temple is not visible. She has deposed that she had witnessed two blows being hit by the accused. She denied the suggestion that at the time of incident she had gone off to sleep and has not actually witnessed the incident.
(vi) Prosecution has also examined PW.6, Head Constable, Vinodbhai Shanker, Exh.30. This witness has deposed that he is serving at Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station past 3 years. On the date of incident i.e. on 28th May 2006 he was in-charge of PSO. This witness has deposed that he was asked by PSI Shri Patel to register FIR which was recorded by him. On the strength of the FIR this witness registered the same in the Station Diary. This witness has further deposed that he had received a wardhi from Civil Hospital at 18:30 hours. Under the said wardhi he was instructed to draw an inquest. He has further deposed that in the FIR Exh.15 at what time the first information report was recorded by PSI has not been stated, at what time it was registered at the police station is also not stated, the date as well as C.R.Number has also not been stated. According to this witness the complaint was received at the police station at 20:25 hours. This witness has deposed that at what time PW.2 Pushpaben lodged her report with the PSI is not known to him.
(vii) Prosecution has examined PW.7, Jesingbhai Chaudhari, Exh.34. This witness is a Circle Inspector. He was instructed on 30th May 2006 to draw a map of the scene of offence. This witness has deposed that the place of occurrence is near the temple of Bhathuji at a place called Yogeshwarnagar. The place of occurrence is an open place adjoining the temple. According to this witness, the house of the first informant PW.2 from the place of occurrence is at a distance of around 65 ft. On the western side of the house of the first informant there are around 5 to 6 houses. After the last house in the line, the place of occurrence is at a distance of 30 ft. This witness has further deposed that in between there is a Neem tree. Except the Neem tree there are no other trees. This witness has further deposed that there are lots of wildtrees ('Gando Baval') at Yogeshwarnagar. This witness has denied the suggestion that there are around 10 to 12 houses behind the house of the first informant PW.2 Pushpaben. This witness deposed that there are around 5 to 6 houses, however, he has shown only three houses in the map. He has also deposed that in the map he has not indicated the distance from the houses which are in a line and the place of occurrence.
(viii) Prosecution has also examined PW.8, Chhaganbhai Vasava, Exh.36. This witness is one of the panch- witnesses of the discovery panchnama of the weapon. The evidence of this witness is not of any significance as he was declared hostile.
(ix) Prosecution has examined PW.9, Manilalbhai Karsanbhai, Exh.37. This witness happens to be the husband of sister of the deceased. This witness has deposed that on 28th May 2006 when the incident occurred, he was at his house. His son’s name is Chirag. He has deposed that on hearing the shouts of PW.2 Pushpaben he ran at the place of occurrence. He has deposed that he saw the accused running away from the place of occurrence after assaulting his brother-in-law – the deceased. He has deposed that he witnessed the accused assaulting with a pipe. This witness has further deposed that thereafter his brother-in-law – the deceased was taken to hospital in a rickshaw. On the way, one of the tyres of the rickshaw got punctured. He has deposed that his brother-in-law passed away before any treatment could be given to him. This witness in his cross-examination has deposed that the deceased was lying at a distance of around 5 ft. from 'otta' of the temple. He deposed that it is true that he had not stated before the police that he ran at the place on hearing the shouts of PW.2 Pushpaben. He has also deposed that it is true that he has not stated before the police that he had seen the accused running away after assaulting the deceased. This witness has further deposed that on the date of incident after returning from work he was preparing to go off to sleep. He has denied the suggestion that he had stated before the police that after having food he had gone off to sleep. He has deposed that it is true that when he came out of the house, he saw a mob of people standing which included his wife, his son, PW.2 Pushpaben and 2 to 4 other boys. The deceased was lying on the ground and was bleeding. He has further deposed that he went at the place on seeing a mob gathered at the place of occurrence. Thereafter he went to get a rickshaw. He came to Bharuch Civil Hospital at around 5 O’clock in the evening. Police was present at the hospital when this witness arrived. This witness has further deposed that the doctor declared the deceased to be dead. This witness has further deposed that when he reached at the place of occurrence he saw the accused running away. He denied the suggestion that he had not witnessed the incident and as the deceased happened to be his brother-in-law he was deposing falsely against the accused.
(x) Prosecution has also examined PW.10, Hirenbhai Ashokbhai Patel, Exh.38. PW.10 is a witness who is carrying-on business in a small cabin at the place where the incident occurred. This witness has deposed that the incident had occurred near his cabin. However, he has denied witnessing the incident. This witness has further deposed that he learnt at a later stage that Kailasbhai – the deceased has been murdered. This witness knew Kailasbhai - the deceased, as the deceased used to frequently visit the shop of this witness. He has also deposed that the house of Kailasbhai – the deceased is at a distance of around 150 to 200 ft. He has also deposed that sister and brother-in-law of Kailasbhai – the deceased are also residing in the same locality. However, this witness was declared hostile as he resiled from his statement made before the Police. After declaring this witness as hostile, in the cross-examination by the public prosecutor, he deposed that two days before the incident Kailasbhai – the deceased had a fight with the accused. This witness, however, has no idea as to why both of them fought. This witness also knows the accused very well as the accused used to frequently come at the cabin of this witness.
(xi) Prosecution thereafter examined PW.11, Balwantsinh Manabhai Patel, Exh.39. This witness is the First Investigating Officer. This witness has deposed that on 28th May, 2006 he was serving as PSI at Ankleshwar, GIDC Police Station. He received a wardhi from PSO at around 6 O’clock in the evening that one person has died at Civil Hospital, Bharuch. On the strength of the said wardhi, this witness visited Civil Hospital, Bharuch. He has deposed that at that point of time Pushpaben – wife of the deceased lodged her first information report. This witness proved the FIR – Exh.15. This witness further deposed that thereafter the inquest panchnama was drawn Exh.23. Thereafter the dead body of the deceased was sent for postmortem examination. Statements of Geetaben Manilal as well as father of the deceased were recorded. On the date of the incident inquiry was made at the house of the accused, but the accused was not available. On the next day, scene of offence panchnama was drawn Exh.13. The statements of the persons residing in the neighbourhood were recorded which included one Chirag Manilal, Dhaniben etc. This witness has proved the contradiction in the evidence of PW.9 Hirenbhai Ashokbhai Patel. In his cross- examination this witness has deposed that the wardhi which was given to him at 6:30 in the evening was given by PSO of GIDC Police station, Ankleshwar. This witness has no idea as to what was the wardhi. He has further deposed that at around 6:30 in the evening he was patrolling in the area of GIDC. At around 7 O’clock in the evening he reached at the Civil Hospital and the FIR was taken down at 7:30 in the evening. He has deposed that no time has been mentioned in the complaint Exh.15. He has denied the suggestion that the complaint was registered at 8:25. He denied that Pushpaben – wife of the deceased had lodged her complaint between 5 and 6 in the evening. He has further deposed that the dead body of the deceased was handed over to the doctor for the purpose of postmortem by Police Constable Anilbhai. In his cross-examination this witness admitted that in the complaint it was not stated by Pushpaben – wife of the deceased that she had told her husband – the deceased that Rakesh – the accused has been visiting their house past two days and Rakesh - the accused must be told not to visit the house. This witness has also admitted that it is true that it has not been stated in the FIR by Pushpaben – wife of the deceased that her husband – the deceased was sitting on the 'otta' of the temple and a blow was hit on the head from behind. This witness has also admitted that PW.9 Manilalbhai Karsanbhai had not stated in his statement that after having food he went off to sleep. He also deposed that PW.9 Manilalbhai had not stated in his police statement that he had witnessed the incident on reaching the place of incident.
(xii) Prosecution examined PW.12, Jayprakash Sutariya, Exh.41. This witness is the Second Investigating Officer. This witness has deposed that on 28th May 2006 he was serving as a Police Inspector at Ankleshwar GIDC Police Station. He has deposed that PSI Shri P.M.Patel had registered FIR being CR.No.I-94 of 2006 for the offence punishable under Section 302 IPC and started the investigation. During that period this witness was busy in investigation of theft of vegetable and on the next day he took over the investigation. This witness has deposed that he had drawn the scene of offence panchnama. He has deposed that the whereabouts of the accused were not known, but at a later stage the accused was apprehended from Pritam cross-roads. Statement of the accused was recorded and arrest panchnama was drawn in presence of two panchas – Exh.17. He has further deposed that the accused on his own free will and volition expressed his desire to show the place of the occurrence as well as the place where the weapon of offence i.e. the iron pipe was concealed. He has deposed that discovery panchnama Exh.18 was drawn accordingly.
The picture that emerges from a cumulative reading and the assessment of materials on record is thus :
(i) In the present case, the trial Court has relied upon the evidence of three eye-witnesses, PW.2 Pushpaben Exh.14, PW.5 Geetaben Manilal Exh.29 and PW.9 Manilalbhai Karsanbhai Exh.37. It appears that two days before the date of incident, the accused had a quarrel with the deceased. As per the case of the prosecution the accused used to visit the house of the deceased which was not liked by PW.2 Pushpaben – wife of the deceased. It also appears that Pushpaben – wife of the deceased had told the deceased to speak to the accused that the accused should not visit their house. Keeping a spite on this issue, as per the case of the prosecution, on the date of the incident, when the deceased was sitting on the 'otta' of the temple, the accused is alleged to have inflicted injuries on the head of the deceased with an iron pipe. To this extent the case of the prosecution is even supported by medical evidence. The postmortem report reveals that the deceased had sustained two CLWs on the occipital region and the occipital bone was found to be broken into small pieces. The cause of death which has been assigned in the postmortem report is also cardio- respiratory arrest due to head injury.
(ii) However, the question is as to whether there is any cogent, convincing and reliable oral evidence on record to come to the conclusion that it was the accused alone and none else who assaulted the deceased. We need to examine as to whether reliance could be placed on the evidence of PW.2 Pushpaben, PW.5 Geetaben and PW.9 Manilalbhai who all claim to have witnessed the accused actually assaulting the deceased.
(iii) While assessing and evaluating the evidence of eye- witnesses, the Court must adhere to two principles, viz. whether in the circumstances of the case, it was possible for the eye-witnesses, to be present at the scene and whether there is anything inherently improbable or unreliable. The trial Court, in our opinion, has failed to observe the aforesaid principles and in fact has mis- appreciated the evidence which has caused gross miscarriage of justice. Credibility of a witness has to be tested by referring to his evidence and finding out how he has fared in cross-examination and what impression is created by his evidence taken in other context of a case and not by entering into a realm and speculation.
(iv) PW.2 Pushpaben Exh.14 in her deposition stated that the incident occurred at around 2:30 in the afternoon. Her husband – the deceased had asked her to keep food ready as he would return to home after buying 'Vimal Gutkha'. According to PW.2 Pushpaben her husband - the deceased was eating 'Vimal Gutkha' sitting on the 'otta' of the temple. Thereafter PW.2 Pushpaben heard the shouts of her husband – the deceased and therefore, she came near the temple and saw the accused inflicting injuries on her husband - the deceased. She has also deposed that the accused had an iron pipe in his hand and hit her husband – the deceased on the head. On overall appreciation of the evidence of PW.2 Pushpaben it appears that Pushpaben has not actually witnessed the incident. It also appears from her evidence that by the time she arrived at the place of occurrence, the assault was over and nobody was present at the place where her husband – the deceased was lying on the ground. First, we are not prepared to believe the version of PW.2 Pushpaben that while sitting at her house she heard the shouts of her husband – the deceased. From the map Exh.35 which is on record, it is evident that there are lots of wild trees surrounding the area. Apart from this, between the house of PW.2 Pushpaben and the place of occurrence, there are around 10 houses and the house of PW.2 Pushpaben is situated behind the last house in the said locality. From the evidence on record, it appears that the minimum distance between the temple and the house of PW.2 Pushapben is more than 200 ft. Further, in the cross-examination PW.2 Pushpaben has very candidly admitted that when she arrived at the place of incident, her husband - the deceased was lying on the ground and was bleeding profusely from his head. She has also admitted in her cross-examination that her husband – the deceased had fallen down and thereafter she reached. After her arrival at the place, other persons gathered over there. We are of the view that the incident in question might have lasted for not more than 2 to 3 minutes. Whether the deceased had any scope of even shouting is doubtful. It appears that PW.2 Pushpaben learnt about the incident only after few people gathered and started discussing about the incident. Having regard to the nature of the evidence, we are of the view that PW.2 Pushpaben is not a truthful eye-witness.
(v) The second eye-witness PW.5 Geetaben Manilal Exh.29 who is the sister of the deceased also claims to have witnessed the assault. In our view the evidence of PW.5 Geetaben is also not reliable and trustworthy. PW.5 Geetaben is also residing in the same locality i.e. Yogeshwarnagar. According to her, incident occurred at around 2 O’clock in the afternoon and at that point of time she was in her house. Her son was sleeping and her husband was also present at the house. According to her, PW.2 Pushpaben shouted and therefore, this witness ran and witnessed the accused assaulting the deceased on his head with an iron pipe. According to her, when she reached the place of occurrence, the accused had ran away after assaulting her brother – the deceased. However, this witness still claims that she saw the accused inflicting three injuries on the head of her brother - the deceased. We are not prepared to believe this version of PW.5 Geetaben that she is actually an eye- witness. It is evident to note that PW.2 Pushpaben has in no uncertain terms deposed that when she reached at the place of occurrence, nobody was present. If after her shouts PW.5 Geetaben arrived at the place of incident and thereafter witnessed the accused assaulting the deceased is unbelievable. It appears that everyone learnt about the incident only after finding the deceased lying on the ground bleeding profusely. Further, in the evidence of PW.5 Geetaben there is a discrepancy even in the nature of the weapon alleged to have been used in the commission of offence. Prosecution has come forward with a positive case that the accused assaulted with an iron pipe whereas PW.5 has deposed that the object in the hand of the accused was a 'Parai' and not an iron pipe. She has deposed that the 'Parai' was flat from the top. The cross-examination of PW.5 Geetaben makes it eloquently clear that PW.5 has not witnessed the incident. She has deposed in clear words that when she reached the place of occurrence her brother – the deceased was lying in a pool of blood. If that be so, then there was no occasion for PW.5 to witness the accused inflicting injuries on the head. She has also deposed, and in our opinion, a very important admission on her part, that when she reached at the place of occurrence there was no one besides her Bhabhi i.e. PW.2 Pushpaben. She denied the suggestion that at the time of incident she had gone off to sleep and had not witnessed anything.
We are also not impressed with the evidence of PW.9 Manilalbhai Karsanbhai Exh.37. This witness is the husband of PW.5 Geetaben. PW.9 Manilalbhai has deposed that at the time of incident he was at his house. His son’s name is Chirag. He has deposed that PW.2 Pushpaben raised shouts and on hearing her shouts he ran at the place where the incident occurred. He has deposed that the accused, after assaulting the deceased, was running away from the place of incident. He has also deposed that he witnessed the assault by the accused on the deceased with a pipe. In his cross-examination he has admitted that when he came out of his house he saw a mob of people standing which included her wife, his son, PW.2 Pushpaben and few others. He has deposed that Kailasbhai – the deceased was lying on the ground and was bleeding profusely. The evidence speaks for itself. First, PW.2 is said to have reached at the place of incident and at that point of time nobody was present. After some time PW.5 Geetaben is said to have reached at the place of incident and even at that time as per the evidence of Geetaben, only two persons were present which included herself and PW.2 Pushpaben and thereafter PW.9 Manilalbhai is said to have reached the place of incident. If we accept the version of all the 3 eye-witnesses, then it comes to this that the accused was present at the place of occurrence all through out, which is absolutely unbelievable.
We are, therefore, of the view that the trial Court committed a serious error in relying upon the oral evidence of PW.2, PW.5 and PW.9 and believing them to be true eye- witnesses to the incident.
No doubt, the deceased was assaulted by hard and blunt object and this is evident from the medical evidence on record. However, the question is, who was the assailant. Was it the accused or some other person? We cannot hold the accused guilty of a very serious offence like murder and sentence him to Life Imprisonment only because that there was a motive behind commission of the crime. Beside this, we have also noticed one more suspicious circumstance. The FIR was registered at 8:25 hours in the late evening. The incident in question is said to have occurred at around 2:00 to 2:30 in the afternoon. The accused was lifted from the place of occurrence and was brought to his house. We may assume that, that may have taken around half an hour. Thereafter the accused was taken to Civil Hospital, Bharuch in a rickshaw. It was PW.9 Manilalbhai who arranged for a rickshaw. It also appears that one of the tyres of the rickshaw got punctured. This may have delayed in reaching to the Civil Hospital. However, what is bothering us is that the deceased was brought to the hospital at around 6:30 in the evening. It almost took more than four and a half hours for the family members to shift the deceased to the hospital, where immediately on examination, he was declared dead. Even thereafter it took more than two and a half hours to lodge the FIR. This cast a serious doubt on the exact time of the incident. Though it is the case of the prosecution that the incident occurred at around 2 O’clock in the afternoon, but it appears that the incident occurred at a much later stage. There is one infirmity which we have noticed. The deceased was already taken to the Civil Hospital, Bharuch. The deceased was already declared dead, then how come that the doctor has deposed that the dead body of the deceased was brought at the Hospital at 10 O’clock in the night. Doctor PW.4 Exh.25 has deposed that it was PSI who brought the dead body to the Bharuch Hospital at around 10 O’clock in the night, whereas PW.11 Balwantsinh Patel, Investigating Officer, in his evidence, has deposed that the dead body was sent for postmortem examination with Police Constable Anilbhai. The question is not as to who brought the dead body at the hospital for examination, but the question is, if the deceased was at Civil Hospital right from the evening hours then where was the question of bringing the dead body of the deceased to the Civil Hospital for postmortem examination at 10 O’clock in the night. If this part of the evidence is to be believed, then the question is where was the dead body of the deceased.
Prosecution also failed to prove the discovery panchnama of the weapon alleged to have been used in the commission of offence. PW.3 Bharatbhai Rajput Exh.16 - the panch-witness did not support the case of the prosecution and was declared hostile. The discovery panchnama was exhibited only to the extent of signature in the panchnama, whereas the contents could not be proved. The Investigating Officer also failed to prove the contents of the discovery panchnama of weapon Exh.18 and, therefore, this piece of incriminating evidence also could not be used against the accused. So far as the panchnama as regards recovery of clothes of the accused is concerned, the same would not help the prosecution as no blood was found on any of the clothes of the accused. Even on the weapon of offence i.e. iron pipe no blood was found as per the report of the FSL Exh.44.
We are of the view that the trial Court committed serious error in convicting the accused appellant for the offence of murder punishable under Section 302 IPC by putting implicit reliance on the evidence of the three eye-witnesses, PW.2, PW.5 and PW.9. As discussed above, the evidence of none of the so-called eye-witnesses inspire confidence and they could not be termed as reliable witnesses.
Under the circumstances, we are left with no other alternative, but to set-aside the judgment and order of conviction passed by the trial Court.
In the result, the Appeal succeeds and the same is hereby allowed. Order of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Bharuch in Sessions Case No.66 of 2006 is set-aside. The accused - appellant is ordered to be released forthwith if not required in any other case. Fine if paid, may be returned.
(Bhaskar Bhattacharya, C.J.)
(J.B.Pardiwala, J.)
/moin