Point of Law: It is the quality and not the quantity which determines the adequacy of evidence. Evidence has to be weighed not counted.

JUDGMENT :

C. Praveen Kumar, J.

1. Heard Sri. G. Vijaya Saradhi, learned Counsel appearing for the Appellants and Sri. S. Dushyanth Reddy, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, appearing for the State, through BlueJeans video conferencing APP.

2. Accused No. 1 and 2 in Sessions Case No. 65 of 2013 on the file of VII Additional District and Sessions Judge, Visakhapatnam, are the Appellants herein. Originally the accused were tried for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 34 Indian Penal Code [‘I.P.C.’]. By its Judgment, dated 23.07.2014, the learned Sessions Judge convicted both the accused under the said count and sentenced each of them to suffer imprisonment for life for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 34 I.P.C. and to pay a fine of Rs.10,000/- each, in default, to suffer simple imprisonment for six months.

3. The gravamen of the charge against the accused is that, on 19.11.2012 at the house of one Vanjari Appala Naidu, both the accused caused the death of one Dongabanti Satyanarayana [‘Deceased’] by beating him with a stick on his head and also pressing his neck with pressure, which lead to his death on the intervening night of 19th/20th November, 2012, at 2.00 a.m.

4. The facts, as culled out from the evidence of the prosecution witnesses, are as under :

i. The deceased is the husband of PW1 and Nephew of PW2. All the material prosecution witnesses are residents of Godugurayi Village and are eking out their livelihood by doing cultivation. A1 and A2 are also residents of Godugurayi Village. A1 was working as Vidya Volunteer in Kuneti School of the same village.

ii. While things stood thus, on the fateful day, the deceased went to the house of one Vanjari Appala Naidu on coming to know that the Works Inspector was at his house to collect installment amounts for allotment of Government Houses under Indiramma Pathakam. When the deceased and PW1 reached the house of said Vanjari Appala Naidu, A1 and A2 were also present at his house. At that time, the deceased questioned A1 as to why he is distributing mango saplings supplied by the I.T.D.A. to his own people. A wordy quarrel ensued between them. Then A1 is said to have attacked the deceased with a stick and beat him on the head while A2 is said to have pressed the neck of the deceased. Seeing the incident, PW3 intervened and tried to separate them, but could not do so. However, after the attack, he separated them and took the deceased to his house. The deceased is said to have complained of pain and burning sensation due to head injury. But, however, he was not taken to hospital, instead they tied a wet cloth around the head of the deceased in order to prevent burning sensation. Since, there were no medical facilities available, the deceased was not taken to hospital and, as such, at about 2.00 A.M., on the intervening night of 19/20-11-2012 the injured died in the house. Thereafter, PW1 is said to have gone to the police station and lodged a report before PW8, who on receipt of instructions from the Inspector of Police, registered a case in Crime No.32 of 2012 for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 34 I.P.C. of GMadugula Police Station. Further investigation, in this case, was taken up by PW9 – Inspector of Police.

iii. It is said that, on receipt of a copy of First Information Report from PW8, he along with PW8 and PW4 reached the scene of offence and noticed the dead body in the house. He took photographs of the body with his camera and thereafter proceeded to the scene of offence. At the house of the deceased, he conducted inquest over the dead body. Ex.P3 is the inquest report. After completing the inquest proceedings, the body was sent for postmortem examination.

iv. PW7 – the Civil Assistant Surgeon, Community Health Centre, Paderu, conducted autopsy over the dead body of the deceased and issued Ex.P16 – post-mortem certificate. The Doctor noticed two contusions and one fracture to thyroid cartilage and hyoid bone on the body of t