1. Rent dispute — Accused set deceased on fire — Conviction under Section 302, IPC. (Para 1 , 2 )
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1995 Supreme(SC) 62
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
G.N. Ray & Faizan Uddin, JJ.
Charipalli Shankararao - Appellant
versus
Public Prosecutor High Court of A.P. Hyderabad - Respondent
Criminal Appeal No. 457 of 1987
Decided on 13.1.1995
Advocates:
G.Prabhakar, K.R.NAGARAJA, N.ANNAPURANI, P.KRISHNA RAO
G.Prabhakar, K.R.NAGARAJA, N.ANNAPURANI, P.KRISHNA RAO
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.
Headnote:Indian Penal Code, 1860 - Section 302 Dying declaration - Appellant raising dispute over rate of rent entered house to throw articles - Deceased, 16 years old girl, found in flames & appellant rushed back & went away - Head Constable recorded statement of deceased & obtained her thumb impression - Attempt was made to get dying declaration recorded by Magistrate but Magistrate was not available Dying declaration clear & specific that appellant poured kerosene oil & set her on fire. It is not a requirement of law that person making dying declaration should make an elaborate & exhaustive statement - Ample evidence about oral dying declaration - High Court was fully justified in accepting dying declaration & evidence - No ground to interfere. (Paras 7 to 10)
Legal Category Hierarchy
Table of Contents
2. Reliability of police-recorded dying declaration — Allegations of tutoring and suicide — Absence of Magistrate during recording. (Para 6 )
3. Dying declaration supported by independent witnesses and lack of tutoring is reliable; exhaustive detail is not required for victims in severe agony. (Para 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 )
4. A dying declaration is not legally required to be recorded by a Magistrate; its weight depends on the facts and circumstances of the case. (Para 8 )
5. Appeal dismissed — Conviction under Section 302, IPC and life imprisonment sentence upheld. (Para 11 )
6. Is it mandatory for a dying declaration to be recorded by a Magistrate to be admissible?
No, there is no legal requirement that a dying declaration must necessarily be made to a Magistrate. The evidentiary value or weight attached to such a statement depends on the specific facts and circumstances of each particular case. (Para 8 )
7. Must a dying declaration be exhaustive and cover every detail of the incident to be considered reliable?
No, it is not a requirement of law that a person making a dying declaration provide an elaborate and exhaustive statement covering every aspect of the incident, particularly when the declarant is under severe stress and agony. (Para 9 )
8. How is the reliability of a dying declaration assessed when recorded by police and challenged as tutored?
Reliability is assessed by examining the testimony of independent witnesses present during the recording. If independent witnesses support the statement and no evidence of tutoring is produced during cross-examination, the declaration is worthy of reliance. (Para 7 )
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
