Yogesh Narain Saxena vs State Of Uttaranchal

Brief facts, which led to the trial of the accused, are as follows:-

Sandeep did not return to his home till about 9.00 p.m. P.W.3, P.W.4 and other family members in the company of neighbourers proceeded in search of Sandeep but he could not be traced anywhere. P.W. 4 at 9.45 p.m. lodged a missing report of Sandeep at Police Out-post. Sub-Inspector Jeet Singh (P.W.8) along with three Constables immediately reached Gol Market. They cordoned the area and initiated search of Sandeep throughout the night in the market and nearby places. According to the prosecution, the accused had cordial and friendly relations with P.W. 3 being a neighbourer, but he did not show any interest for searching the missing boy.

It was alleged that in the morning of 25.07.1979, the accused was seen present in his quarter by Gopal Krishna (not produced), brother of P.W. 3 and P.W. 4. Gopal Krishna asked the accused whether he had seen Sandeep anywhere in the vicinity, but the accused did not utter any word and on the contrary, he got upset and quietly went inside his quarter. After sometime, Rajendra Kumar (P.W.2) noticed the accused locking the door of his quarter and going out. It was alleged that on 25.07.1979 at about 9.00 a.m., P.W. 3 - father of Sandeep, received a call on his telephone from Dehradun. The caller demanded a ransom of Rs.20,000/- for returning his son, Sandeep. Finally, the deal was settled for Rs.12,000/-. P.W. 3 was asked by the caller to keep money near Bindal Bridge, Dehradun, on the same night at 9.00 p.m. It was alleged that the voice of the caller appeared somewhat like that of the appellant. P.W.8 the Sub Inspector Jeet Singh advised P.W. 3 to keep the amount as demanded by the caller at the appointed time and place under watch and control of the police so that the police could apprehend the culprit. According to the settled plan, P.W. 3 left the money at the place as directed, but it appeared that the culprit some how got information of the presence of the police so he did not turn up till midnight to collect the ransom amount. Finally, P.W. 3 and the police party decided to go back to Dak Pathhar as there was no useful purpose of waiting at that place. It was in the forenoon of 26.07.1979 at about 3.45 p.m. when P.W. 4, Jagdish Prasad (P.W. 9), a shop keeper in the neighbourhood of P.W. 3 and P.W. 8 along with police constables and other residents of the area were on the look out of Sandeep near a place known as Khadar, they noticed the accused coming from the opposite side of Gol Market. On seeing the police party and other persons, the accused tried to run away, but he was over-powered by the members of the search party. On interrogation by P.W. 8, the Investigating Officer, the accused disclosed that he had dumped the dead body of Sandeep in his quarter and the same could be recovered by him. Pursuant to the information supplied by the appellant, the Investigating Officer recorded the said information in writing marked as Exhibit Ka-28 in the case diary.

The accused was arrested at Gol Market on the spot and was taken to his quarter. The Investigating Officer asked the accused to handover the keys of the lock of the outer door of the quarter but he replied that he had lost the keys. The Investigating Officer was left with no other option except to get the locks of the outer door and also the lock of the other door of the inner room of the quarter broken up in the presence of witnesses. On entering the inner room of the quarter, the accused opened a tin box in which dead body of Sandeep was found lying. The dead body was removed from the box and on visual examination marks of strangulation were noticed on the neck of the deceased. The Investigating Officer recorded the First Information Report under Sections 302/201 IPC on 26.7.1979 at 5.15 p.m. against the accused and held necessary mazhar on the spot. The neck and knee of the deceased were found tied with a piece of cloth when the dead body was removed from the tin box. The dead body of the deceased was despatched for autopsy which was performed by Dr. P.D. Jakhmola (P.W. 5) on the following day. The Investigating Officer recorded the statements of the material witnesses on the spot. When the accused was further interrogated on 27.07.1979, he took the Investigating Officer and other witnesses to the rear portion of his quarter and got a pair of chappal of the deceased recovered from a water drain. After completion of the investigation and after receipt of post- mortem report and other reports, charge sheet was filed against the accused for offences punishable under Sections 302 and 201 IPC. The prosecution examined as many as nine witnesses to support its version. In his statement under Section 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 [ for short "the Cr.P.C."], the accused has denied his involvement in the crime. In answer to question No.25 [viz., Do you have to say anything more?], he replied as under:-

The accused in his defence examined his wife Smt. Asha Saxena (D.W.1), Vijay Singh (D.W.2) and Mahendra Pratap Saxena (D.W.3). The trial court, after considering the evidence on record, recorded conviction and awarded sentence as aforesaid. The accused-appellant preferred an appeal under Section 374(2) Cr.P.C. The High Court, as noted above, confirmed the conviction and sentence imposed upon the appellant by the trial court.

The evidence of the defence witnesses has been rightly discarded and disbelieved by the courts below as the defence witnesses are highly interested witnesses. Suffice it to say that in case there was any iota in the truth of their testimony, they would not have kept silent for more than a year from the day when the appellant was arrested at Dehradun as per their version till their statements were recorded by the trial court. The presence of P.W.4 - Rajesh Kumar, P.W. 6 Brij Mohan Gupta and P.W. 9 Jagdish Prasad along with the police party in the evening of 26.07.1979 at the house of the appellant has not been doubted by him in his statement recorded under Section 313 Cr.P.C. The appellant has also admitted the recovery of the dead body of Sandeep concealed in a tin box in the inner room of his quarter. It is proved on record by the prosecution that the appellant was on leave from 10.07.1979 to 30.07.1979. The appellant also admitted that he accompanied by his wife had gone to Uttarkashi on 10.07.1979 where his father-in-law was working. His plea was that on the morning of 24.07.1979 he and his wife both had gone to Gol Market, Dak Pathhar from Dehradun to get their quarter cleaned and after doing the cleaning work, they took breakfast at about 2.00 p.m. and then purchased some biscuits from the shop of P.W.3. In the evening at about 5.00 p.m. on the same day, he and his wife again returned to Dehradun. This plea of the appellant cannot be accepted as it is not plausible, satisfactory and believable. The trial court as well as the High Court have rightly disbelieved the defence story of the appellant in the light of the cogent and more satisfactory evidence led by the prosecution in this case. The pair of Chappals of the deceased which he was wearing on the fateful evening was recovered by the Investigating Officer in the presence of P.W.4, P.W.6 and other persons at the instance of the appellant from the water drain located at the backside of the quarter of the appellant which were found smeared with mud. The unrealistic and false plea put forth by the appellant stating that it was possible for some unknown person to have committed the murder of Sandeep and then having concealed the dead body in the inner room of his quarter is, itself, an additional circumstance leading support to the other impelling circumstances unfailing pointing out the guilt of the accused. It is clear from the statement of the appellant recorded under Section 313 Cr.P.C. and his defence witnesses that the appellant and his wife, both had gone to Uttarkashi to meet his father-in-law who was working there. The relationship of the appellant and his father-in-law and other family members was cordial and in such circumstances, the plea of the appellant that the residents of Punjabi community of Dak Pathhar were not happy with the marriage of the appellant being a non-Sikh person with Smt. Asha Saxena D.W.1 has been disbelieved by the courts below and in our view, rightly so as there is no iota of evidence led by the appellant to substantiate any such allegation.

Bearing the above principles of law enunciated by this Court, we shall scrutinize scrupulously and examine carefully the circumstances appearing in this case against the appellant.

In the result, there is no merit in this appeal and it is dismissed accordingly.