The court affirmed the conviction for murder, establishing that the accused's actions demonstrated intent to kill, supported by credible eyewitness and medical evidence.

JUDGMENT :

(M. Choudhury, J.)

The instant criminal appeal under Section 374[2], Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 [‘the CrPC’ or ‘the Code’, for short] is directed against a Judgment and Order dated 17.12.2019 passed by the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge, Charaideo, Sonari in Sessions [CHA] Case no. 18 of 2018. By the Judgment and Order dated 17.12.2019, the accused-appellant has been convicted under Section 302, Indian Penal Code [‘IPC’ or ‘Penal Code’, for short] and he has been sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 5,000/-, in default of payment of fine, to undergo simple imprisonment for another month. The accused-appellant has also been convicted under Section 447, IPC and he has been sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for one month.

2. The investigation was set into motion on institution of a First Information Report [FIR] before the Officer In-Charge, Kakotibari Police Station by the informant-P.W.1, Bijay Tanti on 12.12.2017. In the FIR, the informant-P.W.1 reported that at around 06-00 p.m. on 12.12.2017, the accused came to his house and started hurling abuses using filthy language without any reason. At about 07-00 p.m. on that day, the accused again came to his house and shouted that he would kill the informant and the members of his family. When hearing the shouting of the accused the mother of the infomrmant-P.W.1 went near him, the accused dealt a blow on the head of the mother of the informant-P.W.1 with an iron pipe and ran away from the place. His mother, Sobha Tanti @ Sova Tanti was then taken to hospital with the help of some persons but the doctors at the hospital declared his mother to be dead.

3. On receipt of the FIR, the Officer In-Charge, Kakotibari Police Station registered the same as Kakotibari Police Station Case no. 74/2017, on 12.12.2017, for the offences under Section 447, Indian Penal Code [‘IPC’ or ‘Penal Code’, for short] and Section 302, IPC and took up the investigation of the case himself as the Investigating Officer [I.O.]. As the accused appeared in the Police Station on the date of the incident itself, he was taken into custody. After arrest, the accused was forwarded to the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate, First Class, Charaideo, Sonari on 13.12.2017 and on being so produced, he was remanded to Jail custody. The I.O. of the case, P.W.10, during the course of investigation, visited the place of occurrence [P.O.] and prepared a Sketch Map of the P.O. [Ext.-4]. The statements of a number of witnesses were recorded under Section 161, CrPC. The post-mortem examination on the deadbody of the deceased was performed at Sivasagar Civil Hospital on 13.12.2017 and the Autopsy Doctor [P.W.9] recorded his findings in a Post-Mortem Examination [PME] Report [Ext.-2]. An iron pipe, the alleged weapon of assault, on being produced by the brother of the accused, was seized vide a Seizure List [Ext.-5] dated 13.12.2017. The I.O. [P.W.10] upon completion of investigation into the case, Kakotibari Police Station Case no. 74/2017 [corresponding G.R. Case no. 777/2017], laid a charge-sheet under Section 173[2], CrPC vide Charge-Sheet no. 5 on 31.01.2018 [Ext.-6] finding a prima facie case for the offences under Section 447, IPC and Section 302, IPC well established against the accused.

4. On submission of the Charge-Sheet, the learned Judicial Magistrate, First Class, Charaideo, Sonari securing appearance of the accused from Jail custody on 05.03.2018, furnished copies to him in compliance of the provisions of Section 207, CrPC. As the offence under Section 302, IPC is exclusively triable by the Court of Sessions, the learned Judicial Magistrate, First Class, Charaideo, Sonari committed the case records of G.R. Case no. 777/2017, arising out Kakotibari Police Station Case no. 74/2017, to the Court of Sessions, Charaideo, Sonari in compliance of the provisions of Section 209, CrPC by an Order of Commitment dated 05.03.2018 and the learned Public Prosecutor