The judgment and order of conviction and sentence dated 7.7.2012 passed by the Sessions Judge, Kodagu, Madikeri in SC.No.40/2008, by which accused Nos.1 and 2 appellants herein are convicted for the offences punishable under Sections 302 and 201 IPC, is called in question in this appeal by the convicted accused.

2. Case of the prosecution in brief is that complainant S.S. Kumari is the daughter of the deceased Sannappa. Deceased belonged to Madiwala Shetty community. Wife of the deceased CW.2 Sharada belongs to Telugu Banajiga Shetty community. Accused are the sons of senior paternal uncle of CW.2 Sharada. Because of intercaste marriage of CW.2 and the deceased, accused persons had an illwill against the deceased. According to them, deceased belonged to lower caste and therefore they were not visiting the house of the deceased. Accused persons used to interfere in the family affairs of the deceased and they tried to see that his son Cheluvaraju should not stay with the deceased and made him to leave his house. Cheluvaraju left his house and went to Bangalore, where he got married. When facts stood thus, on 7.12.2007, there was marriage of the daughter of the elder brother of the accused. On the said day, deceased had gone to hospital in Arkalagudu and came back at about 4.00 p.m. Thereafter, he left the house by saying that he would go to the lands. Again he came back and went to Bus Stand in Shirangala, which he always used to go. At about 10.30 p.m., when the complainant Kumari, CW.2 Sharada and CW.9 Manjula, sister of the complainant were in the house, CW.8 Krishnappa came and informed that accused were quarrelling with the deceased and assaulting him near Nala. Immediately, the complainant and her mother CW.2 went to the said place and saw the accused assaulting the deceased with stone and by hands and also kicking him. They also saw that the accused persons pushed the deceased to the Nalaand stamped on him. On hearing the screaming voice of the complainant and CW.2, CWs.11, 12, 13 and 14 came there. By seeing them, accused persons ran away. Thereafter the complainant and other persons took out the deceased from Nala, by that time, he was dead. Thereafter, CW.1 went to the police Station and filed the complaint as per Ex.P1, on the basis of which, case was registered in Crime No.157/2007 in Kushalnagar Police Station as against the accused persons for the offences punishable under Sections 302 r/w. Section 34 of IPC. After completion of investigation, charge sheet was laid against them. After filing of the charge sheet, the jurisdictional Magistrate took cognizance and after following the procedure as per law he committed the case to the Sessions Court as it was triable by the Sessions Court. The Sessions Court took cognizance and secured the presence of the accused and after hearing the learned Public Prosecutor and the learned counsel for the accused, framed the charge. Accused pleaded not guilty, as such the trial was fixed.

3. In order to prove its case, the prosecution in all has examined 33 witnesses as PWs.1 to 33 and got marked the documents at Exs.P1 to P20 and also MO.Nos.1 to 16. During the course of cross-examination, accused got marked Exs.D1 to D6. Thereafter, the statement of the accused was recorded under Section 313 of Cr.P.C. by putting incriminating material as against them. Accused persons denied the same. However, accused No.1 stated that at the relevant point of time, he was staying in Bangalore and had come to Shirangala for marriage of the daughter of his brother and he had gone to Holenarasipura to take part in the dinner which was arranged in connection with the said marriage. Accused No.2 has also stated that he had been to Holenarasipura, where he was arrested. After hearing both parties, impugned judgment and order came to be passed. Aggrieved by the same, the accused are before this Court in the present appeal.

4. We have heard Sri Srinivasa Gowda, learned counsel for the appellant and