IMPORTANT POINTS
1. There is no requirement of law that a dying declaration must necessarily be made to a Magistrate.
2. It is not the requirement of law that person making dying declaration should make an elaborate and exhaustive statement so as to cover each & every aspect of incident.

JUDGMENT

Faizan Uddin, J. - This Criminal Appeal under Section 2 A of the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970 has been directed against the reversing judgment of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh passed in Criminal Appeal No. 324/1985 setting aside the order of acquittal of the appellant dated 31.10.1984 for an offence under Section 302 of the I.P.C., recorded by the Session Judge, East Godawari Division at Rajahmundry in Session Case No. 50/1984. By the said judgment the High Court convicted the appellant under Section 302 of the Penal Code and sentenced him to undergo life imprisonment.

2. The prosecution case was that the deceased girl Seelam Nageswari aged about 16 years was residing with her parents in the eastern portion of the house situated in Kondawari Lane belonging to Smt. Mathineni Guramma, the mother-in-law of the accused appellant. The said portion of the house was obtained by the parents of the deceased girl on a monthly, rent of Rs. 120/- about four months prior to the occurrence, and the land lady was demanding higher rent at the rate of Rs. 150/- per month. It is said that in the morning of 4.2.1984 Smt. Seelam Narasayamma, P.W. 1W/o. Venkateswarlu, P.W, 9, the mother of the deceased girl sent Rs. 120/- towards the house rent for the month of January, 1984 through her son Srinivasarao, P.W. 3 to the (land lady), the mother -in-law of the appellant but she declined to receive the same saying that the rent was enhanced to Rs. 150/- and, therefore, Rs. 30/- more should be paid. In the afternoon when Venkateswarlu, P.W. 9, the husband of P.W. 1 came home he was informed that the land-lady had not accepted Rs. 120/- as rent for January, 1984 and was demanding enhanced rent at the rate of Rs. 150/per month. The same day at about 8.00 P.M. the land-lady Guramma and her daughter Sitalakshmi, the wife of the accused appellant came to the house of P.W. 1 and demanded the rent at the rate of Rs. 150/- and both of them ate said to have abused the family members of P.W. 1, Seelam Narasayamma who requested them not to abuse and wait till the return of her husband to the house as she was not having the money to pay. At that point of time the deceased Nageswari was stitching fall to a saree sitting in the backyard of the tenanted house. In the meanwhile the appellant also arrived there and started showering abuses in raised voice and demanded the immediate payment of rent at Rs. 150/- even without waiting the return of the husband of Seelam Narasayamma, P. W. 1. The appellant, also threatened to remove their household articles and threw them in the Bazar and remove the tiles of the portion of the house occupied by him. Saying so the appellant went to the backyard of the house through the eastern lane while the land-lady and her daughter-in-law continued to abuse P.W. 1 and her family members standing in front of the house. P.W. 1 heard the cries of her deceased daughter, Nageswari from the backyard. On hearing her cries, P.W. 1, Seelam Narasayamma, P.W. 2 Venkateswan, another daughter elder to the deceased as well as her son Srinivasrao, P.W. 3 rushed to the backyard through eastern lane which is said to be more convenient to reach to the backyard and found the deceased in flames. In the mean-while the appellant rushed back and pushing them aside and went away. They poured water on Nageswari and extinguished the fire. They questioned Nageswari who was conscious as to what had happened, to which she stated that the appellant came there abusing and when he was about to remove the articles to throw them away, she obstructed him to do so and then the appellant went into the kitchen, brought a kerosene tin, and poured it on her body and set fire to her with a match-stick. Venkateswarlu P.W. 2 the elder sister of the deceased and her brother Srinivasarao, P.W. 3 went to the Police Station to report the incident. On receiving the information, Head Constable, G.V. Raman P.W. 16 came to the place of