JUDGMENT :

[Sanjay K. Agrawal, J.]

1. The appellants herein two in number namely Sangeeta Tiwari & Shashikant Tiwari have preferred this appeal under Section 374(2) of the CrPC, calling in question legality, validity and correctness of the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 14-8-2013 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Ramanujganj, in Sessions Trial No.320/2010, whereby the appellants have been convicted under Sections 302 & 201 of the IPC and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and pay a fine of Rs.500/- each, in default, additional rigorous imprisonment for six months and rigorous imprisonment for three years and pay a fine of Rs.500/- each, in default, additional rigorous imprisonment for six months, respectively.

Prosecution case: -

2. Case of the prosecution, in short, is that on 27-3-2010, night at 9.00 p.m., at Village Karji, Police Station Rajpur, the appellants along with co-accused (juvenile) Roshan have murdered Priya Tiwari – wife of appellant No.2 and in order to screen themselves from the aforesaid offence, burnt her dead body and thereby destroyed the evidence and thereby committed the aforesaid offences. Further case of the prosecution is that marriage of Priya Tiwari (deceased) was solemnized with appellant No.2 on 8-6- 2006 at Village Karanji, Udhenupara, Police Station Rajpur in accordance with Hindu rites and they were blessed with a son namely Utsav Tiwari on 3-6-2008. It is the further case of the prosecution that after solemnization of marriage, relation between appellant No.2 & deceased Priya Tiwari was cordial, but thereafter, the two appellants along with one juvenile accused started demanding money from the deceased and they used to treat her with cruelty, which the deceased had informed to her father in March, 2009 that the appellants have attempted to murder her by pouring kerosene oil on her body, and appellant No.2 has also demanded money from his father-in-law Mahendranath (PW-11) which was given by Mahendranath to brother of appellant No.2 Ramakant. On 27-3-2010, Mahendranath Tiwari (PW-11) had gone to Government Hospital MEKAHARA at Raipur for treatment of his son Banti, on that day, at 9.30 p.m., appellant No.2 informed him by phone that Priya Tiwari died, then Mahendranath reached to the house of appellant No.2 on 28-3- 2010 and noticed the dead body of his daughter Priya Tiwari in the courtyard of appellant No.2. Kalicharan (PW-7) informed to Rajpur Police Station pursuant to which morgue under Section 174 of the CrPC was registered and inquest proceeding was conducted vide Ex.P-2 in presence of S.N. Bajpai (PW-12) – the then Executive Magistrate-cum-Tahsildar who inspected the spot and also prepared naksha panchnama (Ex.P-2) and he found the dead body of deceased Priya Tiwari burnt fully in the courtyard of appellant No.2 and tongue was protruded and in burnt condition with no other bodily injury. As per the recommendation of Panchas, to ascertain cause of death, the dead body was sent for postmortem examination which was conducted by Dr. Pritam Ram (PW-13) who submitted his postmortem report vide Ex.P-11 disclosing the cause of death to be due to strangulation (asphyxia) and nature of death to be homicidal. On the disclosure of cognizable offence, the police took up the matter for investigation and registered first information report (FIR) bearing Crime No.31/2010. Thereafter, the police arrested appellant No.2 – husband of deceased Priya Tiwari and recorded his memorandum statement under Section 27 of the Evidence Act vide Ex.P-7 and on the basis of memorandum statement, 5 litres of plastic jerrycan containing half litre of kerosene oil has been seized vide Ex.P-8 in presence of two witnesses Umesh Kumar (PW-10) & Sushil Yadav (PW-9). Thereafter, the police recorded the statements of prosecution witnesses Sukhlal (PW-1), Dalsai (PW-2), Kalicharan (PW-7) & Sonar (PW-8), all these witnesses are residents of nearby place to the house of appellant No.2 & d