G.S. Sistani, J.- The appellant has filed the present appeal against the judgment dated 26.4.2003 as well as the order of sentence dated 2.5.2003 delivered by the Additional Sessions Judge, Delhi in the case FIR No. 702/ 99, Police Station Mehrauli, New Delhi whereby the learned Judge has held the appellant guilty for the offence under Sections 302/376/436/201, IPC And awarded the sentence of imprisonment for life And to pay fine of Rs.20,000/- wand in default of payment of fine further RI for two years for the offence under Section 302; awarded the sentence of imprisonment for life and to pay fine of Rs. 20,000/ & and in default of payment of fine further RI for two years for the offence under Section 376, awarded RI for seven years and to pay fine of Rs. 10,000/- and in default of payment of fine further RI for one year for the offence under Section 436, IPC and awarded the sentence of imprisonment for five years and to pay fine of Rs. 5,000/- and in default of payment of fine further RI for six months for the offence under Section 201, IPC. The sentences were to run concurrently.

2. The brief facts of the case as noticed by learned Additional Sessions Judge in the judgment under challenge are as under:

3. A D.D. Entry No.8 was recorded in the Police Station Mehrauli, New Delhi on 24.10.1999. The said D.D. Entry was entrusted to Mr. J.S. Joon, Incharge of the Police Post who reached the hospital along with Constable Gurmeet Singh. Mr. J.S. Joon obtained MLC pertaining to the appellant-Harish Kumar as well as the deceased Diksha. He also met one Sh. Saurabh Bansal at the hospital and recorded his statement.

4. As per the statement of Sh. Saurabh Bansal, he was atenant in house No. B-126, First Floor, Freedom Fighters Colony, Neb Sarai, New Delhi and was working as a Computer Engineer in Noida. This witness has deposed that on 24.10.1999 he was present in the tenanted premises owned by the father of the deceased and that at about 8.30 a.m. when he was attending to a telephonic call he got smell of the cooking gas. He, therefore, checked the gas-cylinder in his kitchen but found everything in order. He enquired from the accused/ appellant, who was working as a domestic servant with the owner of the house on the ground floor. The accused/ appellant replied that everything was all right. This witness has further stated that after about 5/7 minutes when he came out of the toilet he further smelled the leakage of the cooking gas from the window of his kitchen. He could see that there was smoke and fire in the ground floor of the house. He accordingly, informed his friend and rushed towards the ground floor of the house. On reaching the ground floor, he along with the others found that entrance door was lying open and the gas-cylinder with the tube was lying in the lobby. There was a leakage of gas and the fire had already broken inasmuch as the tube of the gas-cylinder and other articles lying nearby had caught fire, the son of the landlord was standing near the gas cylinder and was crying. This witness called out to him and thereafter rushed inside the house to bring him out but when he did not come out, he called the servant, Harish the accused/ appellant in a louder voice again and again but there was no response. That, in the meantime, Dr. Anil Safaya-PW-I and other neighbour also reached. The pipe from the gascylinder was removed. The elder daughter of Mr. Anil Dawra also came out from the bed room and when she was asked about Diksha she told that Diksha was sleeping in another bed room.

5. He further stated that he along with his friend entered that bed room and found that some clothes were lying on the bed and the same were burning. Accused-Harish was lying unconscious on the bed and on the other side the body of the deceased was also lying on the bed. They all put water in order to extinguish the fire. The accused/appellant did not respond. Then they brought out the deceased Diksha and accused-Harish from the room in t