IMPORTANT POINT
Extra-judicial confession is a weak piece of evidence – Where extra-judicial confession is surrounded by suspicious circumstances, its credibility becomes doubtful and it loses its importance.

JUDGMENT :

B.R. GAVAI, J.

1. The appeal challenges the judgment and order dated 15th December 2008 passed by the High Court at Calcutta in Government Appeal No. 38 of 1987, thereby reversing the judgment and order dated 31st March 1987 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, 4th Court, Burdwan (hereinafter referred to as “the trial court”) vide which the trial court had acquitted the appellant for the charge under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short “IPC”). Vide the impugned judgment and order, the Division Bench of the High Court convicted the appellant for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the IPC and sentenced him to undergo imprisonment for life and a fine of Rs. 2,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to undergo further imprisonment for a period of six months.

2. The prosecution case, in brief, as could be gathered from the material placed on record is thus:

On 11th March 1983, UD Case No. 7/83 was registered at P.S. Ketugram that the dead body of an unknown married woman aged about 25 years was lying in a field on the side of the railway track at Ambalgisan Railway Station. The lady appeared to have been murdered by a sharp cutting weapon. On the basis of the aforesaid, Police had begun the investigation. During investigation, it was revealed that the appellant, accompanied his wife (the deceased) and their son had gone to attend the Fullara Mela organised in Lavpur Gram Panchayat and thereafter, the deceased was alleged to be missing from the said Mela. During the investigation, it was also revealed that the appellant had confessed before Manick Pal (PW-10), Pravat Kumar Misra (PW-11) and Kanai Ch. Saha (PW-12) that he had murdered the deceased with a bhojali (the murder weapon) at that very spot where the body of the deceased was found.

3. Upon completion of the investigation, a charge-sheet came to be filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Burdwan under Section 302 of the IPC against the appellant. The case was committed to the Court of Sessions. The appellant pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried. At the conclusion of the trial, the trial court vide judgment and order dated 31st March 1987 acquitted the appellant from the charges levelled against him. Being aggrieved thereby, the State preferred an appeal before the High Court. By the impugned judgment and order, the High Court allowed the appeal and convicted and sentenced the appellant as aforesaid. Hence, the present appeal.

4. We have heard Ms. Rukhsana Choudhury, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant and Ms. Astha Sharma, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the State.

5. Ms. Choudhury submits that the High Court has grossly erred in reversing the well-reasoned judgment and order of acquittal passed by the trial court. She submits that the trial court had rightly disbelieved the testimonies of Manick Pal (PW-10), Pravat Kumar Misra (PW-11) and Kanai Ch. Saha (PW-12) being inconsistent with each other. It is therefore submitted that the finding of the trial court disbelieving the extra-judicial confession alleged to have been made to these three witnesses could not be said either to be perverse or illegal/impossible. She further submits that in any case the interference in a finding of acquittal would not be warranted unless the finding is found to be perverse or illegal/impossible. She therefore submits that the impugned judgment and order is liable to be set aside.

6. Ms. Sharma, on the contrary, submits that the High Court has rightly found that the extra-judicial confession made before PWs. 10 to 12 is trustworthy, reliable and cogent. She therefore submits that the High Court has rightly reversed the judgment and order of acquittal which was recorded disbelieving the cogent and reliable testimonies of these three witnesses. She further submits that, apart from the extra-judicial confession, the prosecution has also established the recovery of the blood-stained clothes and the weapon used by the appellant in