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SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
20th February, 1959.
S. JAFER IMAM, A.K. SARKAR AND K. SUBBA RAO, JJ.
Mulk Raj, Appellant
Versus
The State of U.P., Respondent.
Criminal Appeal No. 3 of 1959.
CRIMINAL LAW - Murder - Conviction - Evidence - Circumstantial evidence - Extra-judicial confession - Corroboration - Sentence - Death sentence - Propriety.
Fact of the Case:
The appellant, Mulkraj, was convicted of murder and sentenced to death by the trial court. The High Court confirmed the conviction and sentence. The appellant appealed to the Supreme Court.
Finding of the Court:
The Supreme Court found that the circumstantial evidence and the extra-judicial confession made by the appellant left no room for doubt that the appellant had stabbed the deceased. The Court held that the appellant was rightly convicted under S. 302 of the Indian Penal Code for murder and that the sentence of death passed on the appellant was not improper.
Issues: 1. Whether the circumstantial evidence and the extra-judicial confession made by the appellant were sufficient to prove that the appellant had stabbed the deceased? 2. Whether the sentence of death passed on the appellant was proper?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The Court held that the circumstantial evidence, including the appellant's presence at the scene of the crime, his flight from the scene, and the recovery of a blood-stained dagger from the scene, was sufficient to prove that the appellant had stabbed the deceased. 2. The Court held that the extra-judicial confession made by the appellant to the witnesses was admissible in evidence and that it corroborated the circumstantial evidence.
Final Decision: The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the conviction and sentence of the appellant.
Judgment
SUBBA RAO J. : This is an appeal by special leave against the judgment of a Divisional Bench of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad convicting the appellant under Ss. 302 and 394 of the Indian Penal Code and sentencing him to death and ten years rigorous imprisonment respectively. Shortly stated, the prosecution case is as follows:
2. Amar Lal, the deceased, Kishan Lal (P. W. 1) and Dewan Chand (P. W. 2) were the sons of one Mohri Ram. They were living in a house in a locality known as "Chhatta Baroomal" in the city of Saharanpur. At the entrance of the house there is "deorhi . The door of the "dahliz" of the house of Kishan Lal and the doors of three other houses open into this "deorhi." In the house the brothers lived in different portions. The deceased and Dewan Chand lived on the ground floor while Kishan Lal lived on the first floor known as "chaubarah". There is an open roof over the "deorhi lying in front of the "chaubarah" and it projects over the gate of " deorhi". Kishan Lal, Amarlal and Mohri Ram were doing business in biris and cigarettes and their shop was two or three furlongs from their house. On 15-8-1957, Kishan Lal returned from his shop at about 11 p. m. and went up to sleep on the "chaubarah" after chaining the door of his "dahliz". Amarlal, after writing the accounts for the day, came there after some time and knocked at the door of the "dahliz". Kishan Lal came down to open the door and, before doing so, he heard the shout of Amarlal not to do so, as a man with a pistol was standing there, Kishan Lal as also his brother, Dewan Chand, peeping through slits in the door saw three persons, namely Mulkraj, the appellant, with a dagger, Amarath, another accused, with a pistol, and Milkiraj with a knife in his hand, surrounding Amarlal in the "deorhi and demanding money from him. Both the brothers then went upstairs to their "chhajja" from where they raised an alarm. They also saw the aforesaid three persons grappling with Amarlal and taking him out of the "deorhi to the open pavement outside, and Mulkraj, the appellant, stabbing Amarlal in the stomach with the dagger and the two accused, Amarnath and Milkiraj; snatching away the money out of his pocket and the gold ring from his finger. The two brothers and a neighbour, one Janendra Das, as also Amrit Lal, who were sleeping on their "chhajjas" and woke up on hearing the cries of Amarlal, came down from their respective houses and saw the accused run away towards the "chhatta Baroomal". Kishan Lal, Janendra Das and Amrit Lal chased them raising alarm. Sunder Lal (P. W. 3),and Rajindra Kumar P. W. 8) also joined them in their pursuit. After going through some lanes, the three accused reached a well wherefrom Milkiraj and Amarnath turned to the left and escaped, and Mulkraj ran straight into a blind lane and was caught by Mohammad Inam (P. W. 5) Ghulam Mohammad (P. W. 7) and others. When questioned by Kishan Lal, Mulkraj stated that Milkiraj and Amarnath brought him there and asked him to stab Amarlal and that he had thrown the dagger in the nali near the place of the occurrence. The appellant was brought to the scene of occurrence and the chaddar , Exhibit 2, was found lying in front of the house of Rajindra Kumar (P. W. 8) and the dagger, Exhibit 1, was found in the nali . Kishan Lal took Mulkraj along with the chaddar and the dagger, and handed him over to the police and at about 12-30 in the night he lodged the First Information Report. Amarlal was taken by Dewan Chand to their family doctor, Dr. Ram Prasad, and both of them took him to the District Hospital. The medical officer examined Amarlal and declared him to be dead.
3. The First Information Report which was lodged by Kishan Lal an hour after the incident gives in detail the entire incident; it gives the names of the accused, the names of the persons who saw the actual killing, the names of the persons who chased the accused, the names of those who caught hold of the appellant an
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