Madras High Court
Balamurugan vs State Represented By on 17 October, 2022
Crl.A.(MD)No.174 of 2020
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED : 17.10.2022
CORAM :
THE HONOURABLE MRS.JUSTICE J. NISHA BANU
and
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE N. ANAND VENKATESH
Crl.A.(MD)No.174 of 2020
Balamurugan ... Appellant / sole accused
Vs.
State Represented by
The Inspector of Police,
Thirumangalam Police Station,
Thirumangalam Taluk Police Station,
Madurai District.
(Crime No.48 of 2018) ... Respondent/Complainant
PRAYER: Criminal Appeal filed under Section 374 of Criminal
Procedure Code, 1973, against the judgment and order dated 26.09.2019
in Spl.S.C.No.44 of 2018 on the file of the learned Sessions Judge,
Mahalir Neethimandram, Madurai, Madurai District.
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For Appellant : Mr.B.N.Raja Mohamed
For Respondent : Mr.R.Meenakshi Sundaram
Additional Public Prosecutor
JUDGMENT
J.NISHA BANU, J.
and
N.ANAND VENKATESH, J.
This criminal appeal has been filed against the order and
judgment of the learned Sessions Judge, Mahalir Neethimandram,
Madurai, made in Spl.S.C.No.44 of 2018, dated 26.09.2019, convicting
and sentencing the appellant in the following manner:
Sl. No. Conviction for offence Sentence/Punishment
under
1. Section 342 IPC One year Rigorous Imprisonment
and a fine of Rs.1000/-, in default, to
undergo one month Rigorous
Imprisonment.
2. Section 302 IPC Life Imprisonment and a fine of
Rs.10,000/-, in default, to undergo
two years Rigorous Imprisonment.
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2. This is yet another case where a man did not have the
maturity to accept the rejection of love proposal made to the deceased
and hence, decided to kill her in a gory fashion by pouring petrol on her
and setting her on fire. This loathsome act was committed by the
appellant with the only motive that the girl who did not reciprocate the
love proposal made by him, should not live in this world and she should
not have any relationship with anybody else in this world. Such incidents
are on the raise and it only reflects the fact that man considers woman
like a chattel and he wants to own or forcibly take her under his control,
without understanding that a woman is also a human being, who is
entitled to decide on her wishes.
3. Love and hate are related to each other in a complex
manner. There has been a serious study by the psychologists as to how
under certain conditions, a persons's love generates a corresponding level
of hate when negative events occur with his or her romantic partner.
Whatever may be the result of the study, such mutual respect for a
woman must start from home and it must be inculcated by the parents
and the society as such. The present day youngsters fall too short on the
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emotional quotient and even the slightest of disturbance and rejection,
makes them take extreme steps without understanding its consequences.
It is high time that our educational system starts focusing more on the
emotional quotient than on the intelligence quotient. If this is not done,
howsoever successful or bright an youngster may be, he is not ready to
take up emotional challenges and the situation worsens when the parents
instead of guiding their children start pampering them. This case requires
this prelude since a man aged about 28 years was going behind a girl,
who was studying in 9th standard and was expecting her to react
positively and get into a love affair and when it did not fructify, he chose
to resort to a monstrous act of pouring petrol on the girl and setting her
on fire. He did not realise that this foolish act will bring to an end his
connections with the society to a grinding halt and will confine him to
the prison for his life.
4. The appellant was working as an AC mechanic and he fell
in love with the deceased, who was aged about 14 years and was
studying in 9th standard. The appellant seems to have indulged in
harassing the victim girl even on a previous occasion and it resulted in a
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complaint which was taken on file in Crime No.87 of 2017 by the All
Women Police Station, Thirumangalam. This resulted in a previous
enmity towards the deceased and the aggression of the appellant was
only getting even more severe. The deceased seems to have told in
categoric terms that she is not interested in getting into a relationship
with the appellant.
5. On 16.02.2018 at about 4.30 p.m, when the deceased was
returning back from school along with her friends, the appellant is said to
have come in his two wheeler and restrained the deceased and poured
petrol on her and set her on fire with a cigarette lighter. The whole body
of the deceased was burnt and she was rushed to the Thirumangalam
Government Hospital for first aid and from there, she was referred to the
Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai for further treatment. The deceased
succumbed to the injuries on 27.02.2018 at about 4.15 a.m.
6. A complaint was given by the mother of the
deceased(P.W-1) on 16.02.2018 at about 9.00 p.m., and an FIR came to
be registered by P.W-14 in Crime No.48 of 2018. The investigation was
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taken up by P.W-26 and on completion of the investigation, a final report
was filed before the Court below.
7. The Court below framed charges against the appellant for
offence under Section 11(4) of the POCSO Act and Sections 342 and 302
IPC. The prosecution examined P.W-1 to P.W-27 and marked Ex.P1 to
Ex.P31 and identified and marked M.O1 to M.O17.
8. The Court below placed the incriminating evidence
collected during the course of trial by questioning the appellant under
Section 313 (1) (b) Cr.P.C and the appellant denied the same as false. On
considering the facts and circumstances of the case and on appreciation
of evidence available on record, the Court below found that the
prosecution has proved the case beyond reasonable doubts and hence
convicted and sentenced the appellant in the manner stated supra.
Aggrieved by the same, the present criminal appeal has been filed before
this Court.
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9. The learned counsel for the appellant submitted that
P.W-1 could not have witnessed the incident and she has been made as a
witness only because she is the mother of the deceased. The learned
counsel also read the evidence of P.W-1 to P.W-9 and pointed out certain
discrepancies and questioned the reliability of those witnesses, who were
examined by the prosecution as eyewitnesses. The learned counsel
further submitted that the deceased was in an unconscious state as per the
evidence of P.W-14 and P.W-16 and the doctor, who gave the fitness
certificate, was not even examined by the prosecution and hence, the
dying declaration that was recorded by P.W-22 cannot be relied upon. It
was further submitted that there was no investigation as to how the
appellant sustained injuries on both the hands at the time of the alleged
occurrence and that would establish that the incident did not take place in
the manner in which the prosecution has projected its case. The FIR
reached the Court only on 17.02.2018 at 10.30 a.m., and there was no
sufficient explanation for this substantial delay. The learned counsel, in
order to substantiate his submissions, relied upon the judgments in the
following cases:
a. Udayakumar v. State rep. by the Inspector of Police, Manali
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Police Station, Chennai, reported in 2020 (2) LW (Crl) 819.
b. Kozhi Prakash and others v. Inspector of Police,
Kannankurichi Police Station, Salem District, reported in 2021 (1)
MLJ (Crl) 113.
c. Jayamma and anothers v. State of Karnataka, reported in
2021(2)MWN(Cr.) 356 (SC) and
d. Ratnasamy v. State by Inspector of Police, Thiyagadurgam
Police Station, reported in 2022 (3) MLJ (Crl) 321.
10. Per contra, Mr.R.Meenakshi Sundaram, learned
Additional Public Prosecutor appearing for the State submitted that the
evidence of P.W-1 to P.W-9 read along with the dying declaration
recorded by P.W-22, clearly makes out a case against the appellant and
the same is also supported by the evidence of the doctor, who was
examined as P.W-18 and through whom the postmortem certificate was
marked as Ex.P8. It was submitted that the Court below had taken into
consideration the entire evidence and had come to the correct conclusion
and the order and judgment of the Court below does not warrant any
interference.
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11. This Court has carefully considered the submissions
made on either side and the materials available on record.
12. This Court will first go into the dying declaration that
was recorded by P.W-22, who, based on the requisition letter received
from Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai, recorded the dying
declaration. The deceased was in emergency ward and she was identified
by the duty doctor. The dying declaration is marked as Ex.P13 and it is
seen that the deceased was in a conscious state of mind and she has
explained about the incident in a cogent manner. It is seen at the bottom
of the dying declaration that one Dr.Lakshmibai had certified that the
deceased was conscious, oriented and in a fit state of mind throughout
the recording of the dying declaration.
13. This Court will now focus on the evidence of P.W-1 to
P.W-9, who were the eyewitnesses to the incident.
14. P.W-1 is the mother of the deceased. She knows the
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accused person even before this incident. She states in her evidence that
the deceased was coming along with her friends and at that time, the
accused came in a bike and saw her going towards the auto owned by
P.W-3. He restrained the deceased and poured petrol on her, after
abusing her in filthy language and set her on fire with a cigarette lighter.
Seeing this, P.W-3 rushed with a door mat and managed to extinguish the
fire. By then, the deceased had sustained serious burn injuries. She also
speaks about the deceased being taken to the hospital in an ambulance
and the recording of the dying declaration by the Magistrate. She was the
one, who set the law in motion by giving the complaint (Ex.P1), which
was also countersigned by her husband.
15. P.W-2 is the resident of that locality and she speaks
about the earlier incident which resulted in registering the FIR against
the accused and also about the occurrence, adding support to the
evidence of P.W-1.
16. P.W-3 is an auto driver and on 16.02.2018, at about 4.00
p.m., P.W-2 along with another woman were riding in the auto. He also
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graphically explains the incident in line with what was spoken by P.W-1
and P.W-2. P.W-4 to P.W-6 are the friends of the deceased, who were
coming along with the deceased from the school and after satisfying their
mental capabilities to depose before the Court, the Court has recorded
their evidence and their evidence is perfectly in line with the evidence of
P.W-1 to P.W-3.
17. P.W-7, who is a local resident and P.W-8 and P.W-9,
who are the teachers in the Primary School, also explained about the
incident in a cogent manner and it falls in line with the evidence of the
other eyewitnesses.
18. The eyewitness account as can be deduced from the
evidence of P.W-1 to P.W-9, shows that it is totally trustworthy and
unimpeachable and it has not been discredited in any manner.
Eventhough the learned counsel for the appellant submitted that the
testimonies of P.W-1 to P.W-9 contradict each other, this Court does not
find those contradictions to affect the root of the case and it can be safely
disregarded. The version of the eyewitnesses corroborates the dying
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declaration given by the deceased to the learned Magistrate. As stated by
the Apex Court in Shahaja alias Shahajan Ismail Mohd. Shaikh v.
State of Maharashtra reported in 2022 SCC Online SC 883 the two
principal considerations for this Court are whether, in the circumstances
of the case, it is possible to believe their presence at the scene of
occurrence or in such situations as would make it possible for them to
witness the facts deposed to by them and secondly, whether there is
anything inherently improbable or unreliable in their evidence. In respect
of both these considerations, the circumstances either elicited from those
witnesses themselves or established by other evidence tending to
improbabilise their presence or to discredit the veracity of their
statements, will have a bearing upon the value which a Court would
attach to their evidence.
19. By applying this test, this Court is convinced about the
evidence of the eyewitnesses supported by the dying declaration of the
deceased.
20. The evidence of P.W-18, who is the doctor, who
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conducted the postmortem and gave the final opinion (Ex.P8) shows that
the deceased suffered the following injuries in the body:
“Extensive Dermo epidermal infected burns
involving the following areas: Upper scalp, whole of
face, front, sides and back of neck, front of chest, back
of chest, back of abdomen, upper part of front of both
thigh. The base of the burnt areas is reddish in colour
and the infected areas are covered with foul smelling
pus material in patches. Partial degloving of skin
noted on both hands. Peeling and blackening of skin
noted all over the burnt areas in patchy manner.
Singeing of hairs noted over scalp, eyebrows,
eyelashes. IV drip wound noted on inner aspect of
right ankle.”
21. P.W-18 has also opined that the deceased died only due
to extensive burns suffered by her and its complications.
22. P.W-10 and P.W-11, who are the observation mahazar
witnesses had deposed in detail about the recovery of the material
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objects. As per the chemical examination report(Ex.P15), petrol was
detected in almost all material objects. Hence, the accused pouring petrol
on the deceased and setting her on fire, has been sufficiently proved
through scientific evidence also.
23. The injuries suffered by the appellant has been spoken
by the doctor, P.W-23, who treated the appellant and prepared the
Accident Register (Ex.P14), which shows that there were injuries in the
left leg of the appellant and there was a fracture. This injury suffered by
the appellant, does not in any way have an impact on the case of the
prosecution or discredit the version of the eyewitnesses or the dying
declaration given by the deceased.
24. In the considered view of this Court, we come to a
categoric conclusion that the prosecution has proved the case beyond
reasonable doubts with abundant evidence and there is absolutely no
ground to interfere with the well considered order and judgment passed
by the Court below.
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25. In the result,
(i) This criminal appeal stands dismissed.
(ii) The conviction and sentence passed by the learned
Sessions Judge, Mahalir Neethimandram, Madurai, Madurai District, in
Spl.S.C.No.44 of 2018 dated 26.09.2019, is hereby confirmed.
[J.N.B, J.] & [N.A.V., J.]
17.10.2022
Index : Yes/No
Internet : Yes
PJL
To
1. The Additional District (Fast Track),
Nagercoil.
2.The Inspector of Police,
Marthandam Police Station,
Kanyakumari District.
3.The Additional Public Prosecutor,
Madurai Bench of Madras High Court,
Madurai.
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J.NISHA BANU,J.
and
N.ANAND VENKATESH, J.
PJL
Judgment made in
Crl.A.(MD)No.174 of 2020
17.10.2022
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