IMPORTANT POINT
Where in acquittal judgment view taken by trial Court was a reasonably possible view in reversing it the view taken by High Court was not the only possible view, acquittal could not be disturbed.

JUDGMENT

P. Venkatarama Reddi, J.-By the impugned judgment, the High Court of Andhra Pradesh reversed the acquittal recorded by the Sessions Judge and convicted the appellant under Section 302 IPC and sentenced him to life imprisonment. However, the acquittal under Section 498-A was confirmed.

2. The appellant, who was an elementary school teacher, married the victim Lakshmi Devi in the year 1991. A daughter and son were born to them in 1993 and 1995 respectively. At the crucial time they were residing in Pulivendla, Cuddapah District.

3. It is the case of the prosecution that there were intermittent quarrels between the couple and there were also demands from the appellant for additional dowry. The accused even suspected the fidelity of his wife.

4. On the morning of 20th April, 1996, Lakshmi Devi was found dead lying on a cot with injuries on the neck and forehead. A jute twine rope was found underneath the cot, according to some of the witnesses. The first one amongst the prosecution witnesses who noticed her unnatural death was her brother (PW 3) who was a lecturer residing in the same town. He went to the house of the accused at about 6.30 a.m. having been informed by the accused that something happened to his sister. The accused himself took PW 3 to his house. According to the prosecution, the accused made himself scarce thereafter. PW 3 sent a jeep to bring his parents living in a nearby village. The parents of the deceased, her brother and other relations came down to Pulivendla after 9 a.m. Suspecting foul play and the role of the accused, the father of the deceased (PW 1) gave a report (Ex. P1) to the police at about 11 a.m., on the basis of which the Head Constable (PW 8) registered the crime and prepared the FIR. In that report, PW 1 stated that ever since his daughter and son-in-law started residing at Pulivendla, they used to quarrel in regard to some family matters. She was not allowed to come to his house for Ugadi festival. PW 1 then mentioned about the information he received through a person who came in a jeep and his arrival at Pulivendla with family members. PW 4 stated that on the observance of the dead body of his daughter, he was having doubt that his son-in-law might have killed his daughter by hanging.

5. PW 8 visited the scene of offence and recorded the statements of PWs 1 to 3 and others, prepared a rough sketch of the scene of offence. He could not find the accused. The inquest of dead body was held on 20th April, 1996 between 12.00 and 15.00 hours by the Mandal Executive Magistrate, Pulivendla (PW 7) in the presence of V.A.O. and others, pursuant to a request received from the ASI (PW 8). In the inquest report, it was noted that the deceased would have died in the early hours of 20th April, 1996 by being strangulated with a rope tightened around the neck when she was asleep and that the appellant was the suspect. It was noticed that there was a black mark around the neck, a scar wound on the side of the left arm-pit. The dead body was sent for postmortem a day later i.e. on 21.4.1996 at 2 p.m. The autopsy was done by PW 9, Civil Assistant Surgeon of Government Headquarters Hospital, Cuddapah. Dr. G. Swatantra Devi also joined him in conducting the autopsy. Ex. P8 is the postmortem certificate. The body was in a putrefying state. The head, various parts of the body. The hair of head was coming out easily. Tongue was protruded. Bloodstained frothy discharge was coming out through nose. The external injury noted was contusion of the size of 1 1/2 c.m. width all around the neck encircling the middle of the neck. The following internal injuries were noticed:

"Neck Muscles contused on left side. Hyoid bone-left greater horn fractured in the middle. Surrounding tissues contused even on right side, tissues around hyoid bone contused.

Larynx - Congested and edematous

Chest - Chest muscles congested 3rd, 4th, 5th ribs on left side fractured anteriority.

Lungs - Markedly congested exuding dark coloured blood on se