IMPORTANT POINT
The judgment reinforces that intent and premeditation in violent crimes are critical for establishing guilt under IPC sections related to murder and attempted murder.

JUDGMENT :

Prithviraj K. Chavan, J.

1. By this appeal, the appellant challenges a judgment and order of conviction dated 18th February, 2015 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Pune in Sessions Case No.655 of 2011 by which he has been convicted and sentenced to suffer life imprisonment of the offence punishable under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (for short “I.P.C”) and to pay a fine of Rs.2000/-, in default, to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year.

He has also been convicted of the offence punishable under section 307 of the I.P.C and sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for seven years and to pay a fine of Rs.1000/-, in default, to suffer rigorous imprisonment for six months.

Lastly he has been convicted of an offence punishable under section 309 of the I.P.C and sentenced to suffer simple imprisonment for six months.

All the sentenced were directed to run concurrently.

2. The prosecution case, in brief, is as follows.

3. Appellant – Yogesh Bachhav was the cousin, in the sense, son of maternal uncle of deceased Jyotsna. The deceased Jyotsna was a resident of Mulgaon, District Nashik. In the year 2010, she was studying in third year Engineering (Computer Science) in Dr. D.Y. Patil Engineering College, Akurdi, Pune. P.W.1 – Sadhana was her friend and classmate. They were roommate also. The appellant had one sided love with the deceased Jyotsna. He used to threaten her as well as her parents insisting upon them to perform her marriage with him. Due to such threats, the deceased as well as her parents were under stress. Deceased Jyotsna had, obviously, narrated all these facts to P.W.1-Sadhana.

4. On 1st September, 2010, at about 6.30 p.m, deceased Jyotsna and P.W.1 – Sadhana went to Gurdwara Chowk on the Scooty of Jyotsna for a breakfast. When they were proceeding, the appellant approached them on his motorcycle and obstructed the Scooty. He asked deceased Jyotsna whether she wants to marry him. He had also threatened to kill her. Upon her refusal, he threatened to commit suicide.

5. On 2nd September, 2010, deceased Jyotsna told P.W.1 – Sadhana that she received a phone call from her father who informed her that the appellant sent him a message asking him to perform his marriage with deceased Jyotsna. The said message was forwarded to Jyotsna by her father. Jyotsna had shown the said message to P.W.1 – Sadhana also.

6. On the fateful day of 3rd of September, 2010 at about 8.00 a.m, Jyotsna and P.W.1 – Sadhana were proceeding to their college on the Scooty bearing registration No.MH-15-CR-3270. Mess was situated on the way to their college. When both of them reached near the Mess situated by the side of Dhanvantari Hospital, Gurudwara, Chinchwad, Pune, deceased Jyotsna stopped the Scooty. P.W.1 – Sadhana alighted from the Scooty and was proceeding towards the Mess. All of a sudden, the appellant came over there by his motorcycle bearing registration No. MH-41/H- 2225. He took out a sickle and a knife from the dickey and immediately inflicted a blow of sickle on the person of deceased Jyotsna. She fell down. The sickle also fell down. The appellant thereafter whipped out the knife and inflicted multiple blows on her neck, chest and abdomen. P.W.1 – Sadhana made a hue and cry and asked the appellant not to assault Jyotsna. In that melee, the appellant had also inflicted blows of knife in his abdomen and he too fell on the road. When P.W.1 – Sadhana tried to help Jyotsna, the appellant inflicted blow of knife on her left thigh. She sustained bleeding injury.

7. By that time, the passers by assembled over there. P.W.2 – Kedar Birajdar who was a friend of P.W1 – Sadhana and Jyotsna found them lying on the road in an injured condition and, therefore, he immediately carried P.W.1 – Sadhana to Paras Clinic, Bijlinagar, Chinchwad, Pune. Jyotsna was taken to Y.C.M Hospital, Pimpri where she was declared dead by the Doctors.

8. P.W.3 – Sandeep Rikame also noticed the incident. Somebody had informed the Police. Within short time, th