IMPORTANT POINT
The prosecution failed to establish a strong motive and sufficient circumstantial evidence to uphold a murder conviction, leading to the acquittal of the accused.

JUDGMENT :

JOBIN SEBASTIAN, J.

1. The sole accused in S.C. No. 951/2014 on the file of Additional Sessions Court-III, Kollam, has preferred this appeal challenging the judgment of conviction and the order of sentence passed against him for offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

2. The facts of the case in brief are as follows:

The deceased Binu was a widow having two children. After the death of her husband she developed an affair with the accused and they lived together as husband and wife. While so, the accused started to doubt the fidelity of Binu and hence their relationship got strained. Then the accused demanded back the money which he had lent to Binu and also spread scandalous rumours against her. Then Binu warned and threatened the accused to desist from spreading such rumors. As a result, the animosity of the accused towards Binu was further inflamed. On 29.05.2013 at 7.15 a.m. Binu, as usual, left her house for work by walking along a pathway passing through a rubber estate. Then the accused, followed her and struck on her head with a granite stone. Due to the impact, Binu fell down to the ground, face down. Then the accused caught hold on her tuft and repeatedly slammed her face into the ground inflicting severe injuries and she succumbed to the injuries. Hence the accused is alleged to have committed the offence punishable under Section 302 of the IPC.

3. On completion of the investigation, the final report was submitted before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-III, Punalur. Being satisfied that the case was one triable exclusively by the Court of Session, the learned Magistrate after complying with all the necessary formalities committed the case to the Court of Session, Kollam under Section 209 of the Criminal Procedure Code. After taking cognizance, the learned Sessions Judge made over the case for trial and disposal to Additional Sessions Court-III, Kollam.

4. In order to bring home the guilt of the accused the prosecution has altogether examined 27 witnesses as PW-1 to PW-27. Exts.P1 to P19 were exhibited and marked, and MO1 and MO2 were produced and identified. After completion of prosecution evidence, when the accused was questioned under Section 313 of the Cr.P.C. he denied all the incriminating materials brought out against him in evidence. On finding that the accused could not be acquitted under Section 232 of the Cr.P.C. he was called upon to enter his evidence. From the side of the accused one witness was examined as DW-1.

5. After trial, the accused was found guilty for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the IPC and convicted and he was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees one lakh only) with a default clause to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year. The said judgment of conviction and order of sentence is under challenge in this appeal.

6. The matter involved in this case was brought to light when the body of the deceased was found lying in a suspicious circumstance at a pathway passing through a rubber estate at Karavur Verukuzhy. Originally the FIR was registered under Section 174 of the Cr.P.C. as unnatural death on the strength of the information given by the father of the deceased.

7. When the informant was examined as PW-1, he vividly recalled the matters which are within his knowledge. The deceased in this case was his widowed daughter, who had two children. The incident in this case occurred on 29.05.2013. He came to know about the incident in this case on the same day at 11.00 A.M. His daughter was residing at Verukuzhy and the accused was her close neighbour. His daughter was in a romantic relationship with the accused. His daughter was a housemaid and usually, she would leave for her work between 6.00 a.m. and 6.30 a.m. In September 2009, the accused attacked his daughter, hacking her hands, and a case was registered in connection with the said incident. The accused threatened her daughter to wit