Prosecution must establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt; mere presence of blood evidence is insufficient without credible linkage to the accused.

JUDGMENT :

CHEEKATI MANAVENDRANATH ROY, J.

1. Challenge in this appeal is to the judgment dated 29.06.2013 passed in Sessions Case No. 72 of 2012 on the file of the learned 7^th Additional Sessions Judge, Vadodara whereby, the respondent herein, who is the sole accused in the said case, was acquitted of the charges for the offences punishable under Sections 302 and 504 of the INDIAN PENAL CODE , 1860 (IPC).

2. Briefly stated, it is the case of the prosecution that the deceased by name Jagmalbhai Bariya (hereinafter referred to as, the deceased) is the father of the de facto complainant, who is examined as PW-9. It is stated that on 11.01.2012, PW-9, after having his dinner, went to the house of his relative to watch television (TV). After watching TV, when he was returning to his house, the accused, who is the nephew of the deceased, followed PW-9. When PW-9 reached his house, the deceased, who is his father, was sleeping on a cot in front of his house. At that time, the accused shouted against the deceased as to why he did not prepare food for his dinner and attacked him with an axe and caused injuries on his head and the left eye. When the deceased shouted after sustaining the said injuries, the neighbours and the relatives of the deceased, who are PW-11 to PW-13 and others reached the scene of offence. PW-11 snatched the axe from the hands of the accused and he preserved the same on the shelf in the house of the deceased. Thereafter, PW-9 and his relatives took the deceased, who was in unconscious state, to the hospital. PW-18 is the doctor, who initially treated him. He found three injuries on the body of the injured and Injury Certificate was issued to that effect by him. While the injured was being treated in the hospital, he succumbed to the said injuries on 20.01.2012.

3. On the report lodged by PW-9 on the date of incident i.e. on 11.01.2012, police initially registered a case for the offence punishable under Section 307 of the IPC. The accused was arrested during the course of investigation. After the injured died on 20.01.2012, on an intimation of his death, the police have altered the section of law to Section 302 of the IPC and under Section 504 of the IPC. The inquest was held over the dead-body of the deceased.

Thereafter, PW-17, who is the doctor, held autopsy over the dead- body of the deceased. In the Post Mortem (PM) examination, PW- 17 found nine injuries on the dead-body of the deceased. He opined that the deceased died due to the “cranio cerebral damage and its complications” on account of the injuries sustained by the deceased. Exh. 42, the PM Report and exh. 44, the Final Cause of Death Certificate mentioning the cause of death were issued to this effect by PW-17.

3.1 During the course of investigation, the Investigation Officer (IO) has seized the axe, said to have been used by the accused in the presence of the mediators from the house of the PW-9, who is the de facto complainant under the cover of a mediator report. Thereafter, it was sent for examination to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) by the analyst. The analyst, who examined it, found blood on it and that, it is of ‘O’ group, which matched with the blood of the deceased. The IO also seized the shirt of the accused in the presence of the mediator under the cover of the mediator report. It was also sent for examination by the analyst to the FSL. The analyst found blood on the said shirt, which is of ‘O’ group, which matched with the blood of the deceased. 3.2 After completion of the investigation, the IO has laid the Charge-sheet against the accused for the offences punishable under Sections 302 and 504 of the IPC as the investigation revealed that the accused attacked the deceased with an axe and caused injuries to him on his head and eye which resulted into his death.

3.3 After