Point of Law: A dying declaration can be oral or in writing and in any adequate method of communication whether by words or by signs or otherwise will suffice provided indication is positive and definite.

JUDGMENT :

C. M. JOSHI, J.

The accused-appellant aggrieved by the judgment dated 21.11.2019 in Sessions Case No.92/205 passed by the learned I- Additional District and Sessions Judge, Dharwad sitting at Hubbali, for the offence punishable under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 (for short “the IPC’), has filed this appeal challenging the same.

2. The brief facts of the case are as follows:

3. The police inspector of Ashok Nagar Police Station, Hubballi filed the charge-sheet against the accused for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the IPC in Crime No.15/2015 of the said police station. It was alleged in the charge-sheet that on 07.03.2015 at about 12.30 p.m., while Ramadas Kudalkar (deceased) was in his Laxmi Jewelry shop at Bhavani Nagar, Hubballi, the accused with an intention to commit his murder came there in the guise of getting some silver ornaments polished and hit the deceased with a machete (Koyta), which is marked at M.O.2, over his head and in the result the deceased sustained head injury and his right thumb was also chopped in the incident. Immediately, he was shifted to KIMS Hospital and later to Balaji Hospital, where he succumbed to the injuries on the next day, i.e. on 08.03.2015 at about 2.35 p.m. The motive for the alleged offence is stated to be that the accused was indebted to the deceased to pay a sum of Rs.60,000/-and when the deceased demanded the same repeatedly, the accused had a motive to commit the offence and therefore, entered the shop premises of the deceased and assaulted him with M.O.2 and committed crime.

4. According to the prosecution, the incident had taken place at about 12.30 p.m. on 07.03.2015 and adjoining Saloon owner Satish Hadapad (PW2) heard the screams of Ramadas and when he went to the shop of Ramadas, he saw the accused running away with the weapon and Ramadas coming out with bleeding injuries. When Satish raised hue and cry, the Kirana merchant i.e. CW10(PW7), Babe Naik, heard cries of Satish and came out and saw the deceased Ramadas coming out of his jewelry shop sustaining injuries to his head and hand and sat over the steps. Being informed by some bikers about the incident, an Assistant Sub-Inspector of police i.e. PW14Ramachandra Niralgi, who was in the nearby came there and with the help of other people who were gathered at the spot, immediately shifted the deceased to the hospital in the auto-rickshaw of PW8/Basheer. In the meanwhile, the injured was enquired by them and he informed that the accused-Santosh Achari had hit him with machete and escaped. PW14Ramachandra Niralgi remained at the spot and informed the incident to the City Police Control Room through walkie-talkie requesting Ashok Nagar Police to come to the spot which prompted the police inspector PW 26 and other staff to go to the spot. By that time, PW5(CW9)-Shankarappa Ullagaddi, who was proprietor of a tea stall in the nearby, informed the complainant i.e. PW4/Prakash and he came to the spot and then having learnt that the injured was shifted to the hospital, he went to the KIMS Hospital. The PW6-Parashuram Nakod, who was running a garage infront of the Laxmi Jewelry came to know about the incident, informed the PW3-Deepa, who also came to the spot and having learnt about shifting the injured Ramadas to the hospital, went to the KIMS hospital. One of the police constables of Ashok Nagar Police Station i.e. PW11/CW16-Manjunath Enagi had arrived at the spot on receiving the information and at the instructions of the Police Inspector PW26-Pushpalatha N., went to KIMS hospital with a handycam. It is the case of the prosecution that while the deceased was being treated in Emergency Care Unit of KIMS hospital, the police inspectorPW26 and the DCP/Hanumantharaya were asking questions to the deceased-Ramadas and he had disclosed that the accused was due to pay him a sum of Rs.60,000/-and he came with a machete and assaulted the deceased on his head and hands. The entire questioning and reply was recorde