Narasu Appa Patil vs The State Of Maharashtra
2004 Latest Caselaw 573 Bom

JUDGMENT

R.S. Mohite, J.

1. By this appeal the appellant (hereinafter called as "the accused") seeks to quash and set aside the judgment and order dated 13th November, 1991 passed by the IIIrd Additional Sessions Judge, Kolhapur In Sessions Case No. 65 of 1991, by which the Trial Court has convicted the accused under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced him to undergo Imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2.000/-, in default, to suffer further R. I. for one year.

2. Brief facts of the prosecution case are as under :

(A) That on 31st December, 1990, several persons including P. W. 1, P.W. 4, P.W. 5 and P.W. 6 had collected to cut the sugarcane crop from the field of one Gopal Shatuppa Patil in whose field the sugarcane crops had been partially cut earlier. P.W. 4 Jotiba Pawar, who was a slip-boy assigned by the sugar factory, informed the assembled persons that the sugarcane crops In the field of Gopal Patll should not be cut because the sugar factory was closed. On the next two days, the work of cutting of sugarcane was suspended. On 3rd January, 1991, P.W. 1, who was the Manager amongst the workers, told his workers to cut the rest of the sugarcane crop from the field of Gopal Patil. He (P. W. 1} also then went towards the said field and while he was proceeding, one Ashok Vlthoba Patil, who had gone along with the other workers, came back and told P.W. 1 Marutl Shatuppa Patil that there was water accumulated on the way along which the truck was required to come to fetch sugarcane. These two persons then again proceeded towards the said field. While so proceeding, they met P.W. 4 Jotiba Pawar who was coming from opposite direction. Jotiba Pawar also joined these two persons, i.e. Marutl and Ashok, in the journey towards the field. When they reached the field of Gopal, they saw P.W. 5 Kalappa Joshi and P.W. 6 Vasant Kalappa Patll standing there. They were standing at the place where the water was accumulated on the road. All these workers told the slip-boy P.W, 4 Jotiba Pawar to assign some other work as it was not possible to take sugarcane from the field of Gopal Patll to the sugar factory by truck. While P.W. 4 Jotiba Pawar started seeing the registers, the deceased Ashok Appaji Patll had come and was standing there. At that time, the accused Narasu came on the spot. He was holding a piece of sugarcane In his hand and eating the same. The time was about 11 to 11,30 a.m. The deceased Ashok standing there asked the accused as to why he had come late and informed him that they were standing there since 9 a.m. At this, the accused Narasu took offence and inspite of an attempt by P.W. 1 Maruti to tell the accused and the deceased not to speak with each other in this manner, the accused Narasu suddenly gave a blow of a sickle on the front portion of the neck of Ashok. The deceased Ashok fell down on the spot. P.W. 5 Kalappa Joshi and P.W. 6 Vasant Patil caught hold of the deceased Ashok who had fallen down and gave him some water and also wrapped a cloth around his neck. The accused Narasu started running away but he was caught at the spot by P.W. 1 Maruti. Maruti snatched away the sickle from the hand of the accused and threw it at the spot. He then handed over the accused to the persons who were present In the field. The persons assembled found that the deceased Ashok was not breathing and therefore, the persons present there kept the deceased at the spot and went to the Police Out-post at Kowad where P.W. 1 Maruti lodged a complaint which was reduced into writing.

(B) On the basis of this complaint lodged by P.W, 1 Maruti, investigation commenced. P.W. 7 A.S.I. Raosaheb Gopalrao Mali sent the complaint received by him at Koward Out-post to the Chandgad Police Station where the offence was registered. On the same day, P.W. 7 A.S.I. Raosaheb drew the inquest panchanama of the dead body and sent the said dead body for post-mortem. He also drew the panchanama of the offence under which he had seized the sickle, blood stained earth, the earth without blood stains, one trouser and one towel. He recorded the statement of the eye witnesses and arrested the accused from whom he seized the blood stained clothes. He further recorded the statement of the other witnesses and thereafter handed over the investigation to P.S.I. Yusuf Ramjan Bagwan, P.W. 8. The said P.S.I. Yusuf Bagwan sent the articles to the Chemical Analyser and after the receipt of the Chemical Analyser's report, he filed the charge-sheet.

(C) After the matter was committed to the Court of Sessions, the Trial Court framed the charge under s, 302 of the Indian Penal Code and at the trial, the prosecution examined in all 8 witnesses to prove its case. Out of these 8 witnesses, there were 4 eye witnesses to the crime being P. W. 1 Maruti Shatuppa Patil, P.W. 4 Jotiba Pawar, P.W. 5 Kalappa Joshi and P.W. 6 Vasant Kalappa Patil. The prosecution examined P.W. 2 Dr. Vasantrao Kadolakar, who proved the injuries caused to the deceased. The various officers who had conducted the investigation were also examined and the Chemical Analyser's report was also placed on record.

(D) Ultimately, by the impugned judgment and order dated 13th November, 1991, the Trial Court believed the evidence of all the eye witnesses. The Trial Court also found that there was sufficient corroboration in the form of recovery of blood stained sickle from the scene of the offence and blood stained clothes from the accused. The Trial Court also noted that the defence of the accused as could be made out from the suggestion given in the cross-examination was completely contrary to his version given in 313 statement. The Trial Court therefore convicted the accused under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced him as above.

3. Though this matter has been heard on 7th June, 2004 and today i.e. 8th June, 2004, the Advocate for the accused has remained absent. With the assistance of the learned A.P.P., we have therefore gone through the entire evidence on record and so far as the evidence of 4 eye witnesses i.e. P.W. 1 Maruti Shatuppa Patil, P.W. 4 Jotiba Pawar, P.W. 5 Kalappa Joshi and P.W. 6 Vasant Kalappa Patil is concerned, the same is clear and cogent. All of them have stated that they have witnessed the accused giving a blow by a sickle on the front portion of the neck of the deceased Ashok. There is absolutely nothing in the cross-examination which could be elicited by the defence in order to throw any doubt on the versions given by them. The accused Narasu was apprehended at the spot by P.W. 1 Maruti. The C.A.'s report indicates that the clothes, i.e. shirt and pant, which were seized on the person of the accused were found with stains of blood and it was human blood of group *O' which was also the blood group found on the clothes of the deceased. The Investigating Officer had also taken a phial of blood from the accused. The analysis of this phial taken from the accused indicates that the blood group of the accused was blood group "B". The sickle, which was said to have been used by the accused to cause the fatal injury on the neck of the deceased Ashok and which was recovered immediately on the spot, had the blood group "O" which is another corroborative factor in support of the eye witness's versions given by the four eye witnesses.

4. As correctly observed by the Trial Court, the defence taken by the accused also was contrary. The suggestion given to the eye witnesses was that there was a scuffle in which the deceased Ashok admitted to have beaten the accused with a sickle. The version given by the accused in his 313 statement was of total denial and in response to a question put by the Court as to whether the accused wanted to say anything in the matter, he replied that he was not present on the spot of the offence and hence he did not know anything.

5. In our view, the eye witnesses' account is believable and has been rightly believed by the Trial Court. There is also sufficient corroboration to the eye witnesses' account from the other circumstances like, finding of blood on the clothes of the accused who was immediately apprehended at the spot and finding of the blood on the sickle. The defence is rightly found to be contrary and consisting of two incompatible versions.

6. In the circumstances, we find no error in the judgment and order dated 13th November, 1991 passed by the 3rd Additional Sessions Judge, Kolhapur, in Sessions Case No. 65 of 1991 and the appeal is, therefore, dismissed.