JUDGMENT :

V.G. Bisht, J.

1. This appeal has been preferred against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Kolhapur, in Sessions Case No.49 of 2014 on 22nd April 2015 convicting the appellant-accused for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sentencing him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay fine of Rs.1,000/- (Rupees One Thousand Only), in default, to further suffer simple imprisonment for one month.

2. In short, the prosecution case runs as under:-

(a) Tarasing Narayan Powar, Informant, at the relevant time was working on a stone crusher belonging to one Adinath Bharmappa Mahajan of Village Madilge Budruk, Taluka Bhudargad, District Kolhapur. Gopal Shankarappa Rathod (accused), his wife Smt.Savita Gopal Rathod (deceased), Pundlik Bhinglu Chavan, Smt.Vidyabai Pundlik Chavan and their family members were also employed with said Adinath Bharmappa Mahajan. The deceased was informant’s cousin.

(b) According to the prosecution, the accused is addicted to liquor and used to beat the deceased by suspecting her infidelity and was of the view that she was having physical relations with his bro