Circumstantial evidence, including motive, preparation, last seen theory, discovery of the dead body, and recovery of articles, can be sufficient to establish guilt in a criminal case.

JUDGMENT

S. Rachaiah, J. - These two appeals arising out of common judgment of conviction dated 25.02.2019 and order of sentence dated 27.02.2019 passed in S.C. No. 1198/2012 by the learned LXVIII Addl. City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru, wherein the accused No. 1 is convicted for the offence under the provision of Sections 302 and 201 of IPC and he is sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 10,000/- for the offence under Section 302 r/w 34 of IPC, in default of payment of fine, he is further sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for six months. Further, he is sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 5 years for the offence punishable under Section 201 r/w 34 of IPC and to pay a fine of Rs. 5,000/-, in default of payment of fine, he is further sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for three months. Accused No. 2 is convicted for the offence punishable under Section 201 of IPC and he is sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for 5 years and to pay a fine of Rs. 5,000/- and in default of payment of the fine, he is sentenced to undergo imprisonment for three months, whereas the Trial Court acquitted Accused No. 2 for the offence punishable under Section 302 of IPC.

2. Being aggrieved by the judgment and order of conviction passed in S.C. No. 1198/2012 passed by the learned LXVIII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru, the Accused No. 1/Appellant has preferred the appeal in Crl. A. No. 1844/2019, praying to set-aside the impugned judgment and order of conviction.

3. On the other hand, in Crl. A. No. 1378/2019 the State has preferred this appeal against the judgment and order of acquittal passed by the learned LXVIII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru, as against the Respondent/Accused No. 2, for the offence punishable under the provision of Section 302 of IPC.

4. Since these two appeals are arising out of the same judgment, in order to re-appreciate the evidence on record and for convenience, they are taken up together for final disposal.

I. BRIEF FACTS OF THE CASE

5. Accused No. 1-Vinay Kumar/Appellant in Crl. A. No. 1844/2019 and the deceased-Smt. Vanajakshi are husband and wife. Their marriage was solemnized on 22.08.2005. After their marriage, both were residing in a house No. 112, 1st Main Road, 1st Cross Road, Guttigere, Bengaluru. Out of their wedlock, a male child was born. Accused No. 1 was running a fancy Store in the area and both were residing cordially. After sometime, there were frequent quarrels between accused No. 1 and the deceased over financial issues. The reason for quarrel is, the accused No. 1 had pledged the gold jewels belonging to the deceased and was not able to bring those jewels back; the birthday of the deceased Vanajakshi was about to be held three days before her death and as she wanted to wear the jewels, she had insisted the accused No. 1 to bring back the jewels for her birthday. The accused No. 1 could not bring the jewels back. The accused No. 1 having frustrated by the act of the deceased Vanajakshi, hatched a plan to commit her murder. Accordingly, he has purchased a strip of a sleeping tablet and also purchased masalapuri, brought masalapuri and sleeping tablet to the house and mixed the tablets in the masalapuri and made the deceased Vanajakshi to eat the same and after consuming the masalapuri, she became unconscious. Thereafter, he called accused No. 2 to bring his TATA SUMO vehicle and both took her in the said vehicle to the place near Moogadi tank bund at Punganuru and stopped the vehicle and strangled her to death with a telephone wire and dumped the dead body underneath the bridge. The accused No. 1 on the next day early in the morning made a hue and cry saying that somebody has kidnapped his wife by making black magic in his house. He has depicted the place as if somebody had done black magic and kidnapped his wife. On hearing the hue and cry, the people gathered near the house of accused No. 1 and informed the