Bombay High Court
Sudhir Laxman Bote vs The State Of Maharashtra on 31 August, 2021
Bench: Nitin Jamdar, C.V. Bhadang
8-ia-2050-2021 in apeal-459-2021
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
INTERIM APPLICATION NO.2050 OF 2021
IN
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.459 OF 2021
Sudhir Laxman Bote ...Applicant
V/s.
The State of Maharashtra ...Respondent
----
Mr.Satyavrat Joshi for the Applicant.
Mrs.P.P. Shinde, APP, for the Respondent-State.
----
CORAM : NITIN JAMDAR AND
C. V. BHADANG, JJ.
DATE : 31 August 2021
P.C.
. By this Application, the Applicant Sudhir Bote
(Accused No.2) is seeking an order of suspension of sentence and
release on bail. The Applicant along with Satappa Pundalik
Nartawadekar (Accused No.1) was tried for the offence
punishable under Section 302 and 326 read with Section 34 of
the Indian Penal Code ('IPC' for short) before the learned
Sessions Judge at Kolhpaur in Sessions Case No.100 of 2017.
2. The prosecution case is that the Applicant and the co-
accused, in furtherance of their common intention had
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intentionally caused the death of Keraba Bote the husband of
PW-2 Chayya Bote.
3. The learned Sessions Judge by the impugned
judgment and order dated 1 April 2021 has convicted the
Applicant and the co-accused for the offence under Section 302
and 324 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code. For the
offence under Section 302 of the IPC the Applicant and the
co-accused have been sentenced to suffer imprisonment for life
along with fine, while under Section 324 they have been
sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year along
with fine.
4. We have heard the learned counsel for the Applicant
and the learned APP. Perused record.
5. The deceased and the Applicant have their
agricultural lands adjacent to each other at Village Hasur Budruk,
Taluka-Kagal, District-Kolhapur. The incident in question
happened on 14 April 2017. The deceased along with his wife
PW-2 Chayya Bote had gone to their field and found that while
ploughing the soil from the field of the Applicant/Accused had
fallen on the land of the deceased. It is said that while returning
from the field the deceased asked the Accused as to whether they
want to take away the soil or else it would be spread over the field
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of the deceased. Upon this the Applicant got angry and pelted
lump of earth and stones on the person of the deceased and the
informant and it is alleged that the Applicant assaulted the
deceased on his right forearm with a scythe. The Accused No.1
assulted the deceased on the head, as a result of which the
deceased Keraba Bote sustained injuries to which he subsequently
succumbed. Upon a report lodged by PW-2 Chayya Bote an
offence came to be registered initially under section 326 which
was subsequently converted to Section 302 of IPC upon death of
Kerba Bote.
6. Upon hearing the learned counsel for the parties and
perusal of the record we prima facie find that the incident
happened in front of the house of the Applicant when the
deceased had asked the Accused about soil lying in his field.
Insofar as the present Applicant is concerned the allegation is that
he had assaulted the deceased by a scythe on his hand.
7. The learned counsel for the Applicant pointed out
that there are no circumstances to indicate that there was any
premeditation or a concert between the two accused to assault or
to cause the death of Keraba. He submitted that the
circumstances indicate that at the highest the incident had
happened on the spur of the moment and the assault by the
Applicant on the hand does not indicate any intention to cause
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the death of Keraba Bote. The learned counsel in this regard
pointed out the evidence about cause of death. It is pointed out
that the Applicant was on bail during the course of the trial,
which was granted by this Court by order dated 4 December
2017 in Bail Application No.2627 of 2017.
8. It is also pointed out that in her evidence PW-2
Chayya Bote has stated about an incident which had happened in
the field in which also there was pelting of stone on husband of
PW-2 and he had become unconscious.
9. Considering the overall circumstances and prima
faice having regard to the fact that the allegation insofar as the
present Application is concerned, is about an assault on the hand
and further having regard to the submission that incident had
happened on the spur of the moment and fact that the Applicant
was on bail during the course of the trial, we find that the
sentence can be suspended.
10. In the result the following order is passed.
ORDER
(i) The substantive sentence awarded to the
Applicant/Accused Sudhir Laxman Bote, is hereby
suspended pending disposal of the Appeal.
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8-ia-2050-2021 in apeal-459-2021
(ii) The Applicant Sudhir Laxman Bote, shall be
released on bail on executing a P.R. Bond in the sum
of Rs.25,000/- with one or two solvent sureties in the
like amount to the satisfaction of the learned Sessions
Judge.
(iii) The Criminal Application is disposed of in the
aforesaid terms.
(C. V. BHADANG, J.) (NITIN JAMDAR, J.)
Digitally signed by
NILAM NILAM SANTOSH
SANTOSH KAMBLE
Date: 2021.08.31
KAMBLE 18:16:03 +0530
N.S. Kamble page 5 of 5
