HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.1737 of 2007 JUDGMENT: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice A. Gopal Reddy) This Criminal Appeal is directed against the conviction and sentence recorded in Sessions Case No.1 of 2007 by the II Addl. Sessions Judge (Fast Track Court – I), Khammam, vide judgment dated 28.09.2007, whereby and whereunder the learned Sessions Judge convicted the appellant-accused herein under Section 235(2) Cr.P.C. for the offence punishable under Section 302 IPC and, accordingly, sentenced him to suffer imprisonment for life and also to pay a fine of Rs.200/-, in default, to suffer simple imprisonment for two months. 2. The case of the prosecution, in brief, is as under: i) On 3.9.2003 at about 9.30 a.m. P.W.1-complainant, Kaka Durgamma, presented Ex.P.1 report stating that her brother-in-law’s daughter, Rama Laxmi’s marriage was performed with one Karam Madhava Rao (accused) of Pathrapuram about four years ago. They were blessed with a child. About three months back, said Rama Lakshmi came to Gollagudem by leaving her husband. On 2.9.2003 morning, the accused came to Gollagudem and asked his wife to accompany him, for which she refused to join him. On that, he tried to apply some drug on her on the pretext of diverting her mind and love him and thereby she raised hue and cry. Then, her husband, Muthaiah, picked up a quarrel with the accused and beat him with hands. On the same day at about 9.00 p.m., the accused took away her husband to consume liquor, but did not return home till the morning on 3.9.2003. On 3.9.2003 at about 7.00 a.m. P.W.3 came to her house and informed that her husband’s dead body was found nearby a pond at Subbampeta. Immediately she went to the spot and saw the dead body. She suspected that the accused might have caused the death of her husband. ii) On receipt of the said report, P.W.14, A.S.I. of Police, Cherla, registered a case in Crime No.67 of 2003 under Section 174 Cr.P.C. and took up investigation. During the course of investigation, he visited the scene of offence, prepared Crime Details Form in the presence of Mediators Sonde Mudiraju and Yelakam Chander Rao, got photographed the scene and dead body by a photographer. He also conducted inquest on the dead body of the deceased in the presence of same mediators. He sent the dead body to the Government Civil Hospital, Venkatapuram, for autopsy. P.W.13, the Medical Officer, conducted autopsy and issued short opinion stating that the cause of death of the deceased was due to traumatic shock. On 6.9.2003 on receipt of the said opinion, P.W.14 altered the Section of Law from Section 174 Cr.P.C. to Section 302 IPC and sent express intimations to all the concerned. Subsequently, P.W.15, the C.I. of Police, Venkatapuram, took up further investigation. He verified the investigation done by P.W.14 and examined L.Ws.13 to 15 and recorded their statements. The investigation established that the accused committed murder of the deceased by giving fist blows and caused his instantaneous death and thereby committed an offence under Section 302 IPC. After completion of investigation, P.W.15 laid charge sheet against the accused. The plea of the accused was of total denial. 3. In order to prove the guilt of the accused, the prosecution examined PWs.1 to 15 and got marked Exs.P.1 to P.13. On behalf of the defence, no oral or documentary evidence was adduced. 4. After evaluating both oral and documentary evidence available on record, the learned Sessions Judge convicted and sentenced the accused as stated supra. Being aggrieved by the same, the accused preferred this criminal appeal. 5. We have heard both sides and perused the record. 6. As per the case of the prosecution, the only eye witness to the incident is P.W.9, but she turned hostile to the case of the prosecution. Hence, her evidence is not helpful to the prosecution. So, the entire case rests upon the circumstantial evidence. 7. P.W.1 is none other than the wife of the deceased and she set the law in motion by lodging Ex.P.1 complaint, on which basis, P.W.14 registered Crime No.67 of 2003 for the offence under Section 174 Cr.P.C. She stated that on the date of incident, the accused, who is son-in-law of her husband’s brother, came to the house of one Somaiah and called his wife P.W.4 to accompany him to his house at Patrapuram. When P.W.4 refused to come along with him, and there was a quarrel between her husband and the accused and she brought her husband to her house. She further deposed that after having dinner on that night, they went for sleep and on the next day morning, she came to know about the death of her husband through P.W.3 and that the accused was responsible for the death of her husband. 8. In his evidence, P.W.2 stated that she saw the dead body of the deceased in a pit situated by the side of a road at Subbampeta and later she informed the same to P.W.3 when she came to her kirana shop. P.W.3 deposed that P.W.2 has informed to her about the death of the deceased, when she went to her kirana shop and thereafter she informed the same to P.W.1. 9. According to P.W.4, she is wife of the accused and three months prior to the date of the incident, she came to Gollagudem leaving the matrimonial home due to a quarrel between them. On the date of incident, the accused came and poured something into her ear and then she raised cries. In the meanwhile, the deceased came there and quarreled with the accused and later the accused left the house. On the next day morning, she came to know about the death of the deceased. 10. P.W.5 deposed that the deceased is his younger brother and the accused is the son-in-law of his younger brother. On the date of incident, the accused has taken his brother to Subbampeta at about 8.00 p.m. and on the next day, he came to know about the death of his brother. 11. P.Ws.6, 7, 9, 10 and 11 turned hostile to the case of the prosecution. P.W.8 is the photographer. P.W.12 is the panch witness for the inquest held on the dead body of the deceased. P.Ws.14 and 15 are the Investigating Officers. 12. P.W.13 is the Medical Officer at the Government Civil Hospital, Venkatapuram. He conducted post mortem examination on the dead body of the deceased and found an external injury over the right hypocondrya of 3 x 2 cm in size and an internal injury i.e., tear on lever. He opined that the cause of the death was due to traumatic shock due to lever damage and he issued Ex.P.11 post mortem report. He further deposed that the internal injury is possible if a person gives a fist with force. 13. Though P.W.6, younger brother of the deceased, turned hostile to the case of the prosecution, in cross-examination by the A.P.P. he admitted that he gave a statement before the police stating that on hearing cries at the house of his brother, he went there and found his brother abusing and beating the accused and later they all left the house of his brother. Subsequently, at about 9.00 p.m. he woke up and saw his brother and the accused talking together and, when he questioned the accused, he informed that they were going to Subbampet and they would return home. Whereas, P.W.1, wife of the deceased, deposed that on the date of incident, there was a quarrel between the accused and her husband and thereafter she brought her husband to her house and after having dinner, they went to sleep and on the next day morning, she came to know through P.W.3 that she saw the dead body of her husband (deceased). She has also not stated about the accused and the deceased going to Subbampet on the date of incident after the quarrel took place between them. Further, there is no consistency in the evidence of the material witnesses i.e., P.Ws.1, 4, 5 and 6. 14. It is now fairly well settled that when a case rests upon the circumstantial evidence, the prosecution must establish all the links in the chain of circumstances, so that there is no escape from the conclusion that within all human probability the crime was committed by the accused and none else. On this aspect, it is pertinent to refer to a decision reported in Padala Veera Reddy v. State of A.P.[1], wherein at para 10 it was held as follows:- “(1) The circumstances, from which an inference of guilt is sought to be drawn, must be cogently and firmly established; (2) Those circumstances should be of a definite tendency unerringly pointing towards guilt of the accused; (3) The circumstances, taken cumulatively, should form a chain so complete that there is no escape from the conclusion that within all human probability the crime was committed by the accused and none else; and (4) The circumstantial evidence in order to sustain conviction must be complete and incapable of explanation of any other hypothesis than that of the guilt of the accused and such evidence should not only be consistent with the guilt of the accused but should be inconsistent with his innocence.” 15. By applying the above said principles to the case on hand, we are of the view that the prosecution has miserably failed to connect the accused with the crime and the present evidence adduced by the prosecution is not clinchingly pointing towards the guilt of the accused. Hence, the conviction and sentence recorded by the trial Court are liable to be set aside. 16. In the result, the Criminal Appeal is allowed and the conviction and sentence recorded by the II Additional Sessions Judge (Fast Track Court-I), Khammam, vide judgment, dated 28.09.2007, in Sessions Case No.1 of 2007, against the appellant for the offence punishable under Section 302 of I.P.C., are hereby set aside and, consequently, the appellant-accused is acquitted of the offence and he shall be set at liberty forthwith, if he is not required in any other crime. The fine amount, if any, paid by the appellant-accused shall be returned to him. ____________________ A. GOPAL REDDY. J __________________ RAJA ELANGO, J 26th July, 2011 cbs HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.1737 of 2007 (Delivered by Hon’ble Sri Justice A. Gopal Reddy) 26th July, 2011 cbs HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.1737 of 2007 Dated:26.07.2011 BETWEEN: Karam Madhavarao … Appellant/ Accused AND The State of A.P., rep. by the Public Prosecutor, High Court of A.P., Hyderabad. …Respondent THIS COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING: [1] AIR 1990 SUPREME COURT 79