Insufficient evidence and benefit of doubt led to the acquittal of the accused, highlighting the importance of proving guilt beyond reasonable doubt in criminal cases.

P.K.Deb, J.

1. The appellant is an I.A.S. officer, who has been tried for a charge under Sec. 302/201 I.P.C. for intentionally committing murder of his wife, Joyes Kujur and then of screening himself from the legal punishment by setting fire the dead body to show that he had caught fire accidentally and died of burn injury.

2. The prosecution story in brief is that on 175-1990 at 1 a.m., the accused who was then posted at Ranchi walked from his residence and rushed to Lalpur Police Station and lodged a written report (Ext. 4) stating inter alia that his wife Joyes Kujur died of burn injuries at 11 p.m. in the last night i.e. 16-5-1990. As per the report, on that date in the evening, the deceased Joyes Kujur went to her mothers residence at Morhabadi and returned home at about 9 p.m. She then went to kitchen to prepare food, for herself and the informant. The husband and wife alone were living in a rented house. The food was ready at 10.30 p.m. As desired by the accused when Joyes Kujur went to the kitchen to bring food for service to the accused then suddenly she caught fire and then came out with screams. There was no supply of electricity at that time. The informant tried to put off the fire with the help of a Blanket but Joyes Kujur fell down at the bed room and died. The accused raised alarm. Some people came there from the neighbourhood but by that time Joyes Kujur died. On the basis of that report, Lalpur Police registered a U.D. case being Lalpur P.S. U.D. Case No. 3 of 1990. For enquiry into that case, the officer-in-charge of Lalpur Police Station went to the place of occurrence at about 2 a.m. The residence is situated at Biraj Nagar which is just at the back of the P & T Colony about a Kilometer north from the Lalpur Police Station. As there was no electricity, the place could not be inspected and the officer-incharge locked the house of the accused and spent whole night there keeping the strict vigilance. On the next morning at about 6.30 a.m., he started minute inspection. He held inquest over the dead body and made the following observations:

(1) The tongue was protruded by an inch and pressed under the jaws.

(2) The blood oozing from the right ear

(3) There were marks of bum injuries on the face, neck, back, waist, hip, thigh up to knee, both hands and abdomen.

(4) The deceased was bearing partially burnt blouse of purple colour, white bracier. There was no sari on the body of the deceased. Petticoat was found at some distance of the dead body.

(5) The stool of the deceased was near the dead body.

(6) The right leg and the right hand were extending and spread out below the bed.

Inquest report was prepared as Ext. 3 in presence of two witnesses, namely, Gorakh Nath Singh and Chitranjan Das and seizure list (Ext. 1) was also prepared of the following articles which were found near the dead body:

(1) A menstruating pad with some blood stains alongwith its belt which was kept at a distance of 1 fit from the dead body.

(2) A full pant of the deceased to which one burnt polyester shirt was stuck. A part of the burnt, shrunk polyester Sari was also sticking to the full pant.

(3) The sandal of the one foot of the accused was found near the dead body whereas another one was kept on the rack.

(4) The sandals of the deceased were found kept under the bed (Palang); her hair pins were found on the bed.

(5) Half burnt cigarette and match sticks were found in the bed room and the Kitchen.

3. After observation of the position in the bed room and in the kitchen and on scrutiny of the dead body and the materials found nearby the dead body, an FIR (Ext. 6) was lodged by the Officer Incharge on 17-5-1990, to the effect that the whole occurrence seemed to be a mysterious one when it was found that the informant never took any steps for sending his injured burnt wife to hospital or to bring a doctor. Even the son and the brother of the deceased were informed on the next day i.e. 17-5-1990. The people of the neighbour-hood wer