IMPORTANT POINT
Circumstantial evidence must form a complete chain to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt in criminal cases.

JUDGMENT :

Pushpendra Singh Bhati, J.

1. This criminal appeal under Section 374 Cr.P.C. has been preferred claiming the following reliefs :

“It is, therefore, respectfully prayed that this appeal may kindly be allowed and the accused appellant may be acquitted of all the charges levelled against him and he be set at liberty.”

2. The matter pertains to an incident which occurred in the year 1992 and the present appeal has been pending since the year 1996.

3. The accused-appellant laid a challenge to the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 30.01.1996 passed by the learned Special Judge for SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Cases, Udaipur, in Sessions Case No.28/93, whereby the present accused-appellant has been convicted and sentenced as below :

However, vide the impugned judgment, accused-Ashok Kumar, against whom offence under Sections 120-B & 498-A IPC was not found to be made out, was acquitted of the said charges, while extending him the benefit of doubt.

4. As the pleaded facts and the record would reveal, Laxman Prasad (PW-1), who at the relevant time was posted as Head Constable, Police Station, Hiran Magri, Udaipur, had submitted a written report (Ex.P-55) on 19.12.1992 before the said Police Station stating therein that on 12.12.1992, on receiving an information from one Ashok Kumar and the persons accompanying him, at the relevant time, to the effect that his (Ashok Kumar’s) wife-Rajkumari and cousin brother Somnath were not traceable, the concerned SHO directed the said Laxman Prasad to go with the said Ashok Kumar; in pursuance of such direction, the said Laxman Prasad alongwith Karan Singh (the then Constable No.178) departed from the Police Station, Hiran Magri with Ashok Kumar and other persons, towards his (Ashok Kumar’s) house.

4.1. It was further stated in the said report that on the way, the said Laxman Prasad came to know about certain prolonged uncordial marital relationship between Ashok Kumar and his wife-Rajkumari, owing to which they both were living separately in the same house. As per the report, the next day following the Diwali Festival, Somnath, i.e. son (present accused-appellant) of Uncle (Mahendra Sharma) of Ashok Kumar arrived from Indore, who thereafter, started living with Ashok Kumar in his house and also started working in Ashok Kumar’s shop.

4.2. It was also stated in the report that on 12.12.1992 (date of submission of the report), as per Ashok Kumar, the said Somnath due to not feeling well, stayed at home and Ashok Kumar left the house at 9:30 a.m. for his shop situated in Bapu Bazar after his children went to school at 7:30 a.m.; when the children arrived from school at 2:00 p.m., there were locks on the doors of the rooms, their mother and uncle could not be found and despite being enquired by the children in the neighbourhood, neither could they get the keys, nor could know the whereabouts of their mother (Rajkumari) and uncle (Somnath).

4.3. Thereafter, Dheeraj, elder son of Ashok Kumar, arrived at his shop at 5:00 p.m. and informed Ashok Kumar about the locks put on the doors of the rooms, whereupon, Ashok Kumar alongwith Prabhu Dayal, Sultan Singh, Abhay Seth and others reached the Police Station, whereupon, Constable Laxman Prasad alongwith Constable Karan Singh, under the directions of the SHO, reached the house of Ashok Kumar located in Verma Colony, and found that there were locks on the rooms of Ashok Kumar and his wife-Rajkumari. The door of kitchen was also closed, and outside the kitchen, utensils were found in a scattered position.

4.4. It was further stated in the report that on being enquired in the neighbourhood, Ashok Kumar came to know that no one had seen his wife-Rajkumari on that day i.e. 12.12.1992.

4.5. As per the report, thereafter, Ashok Kumar opened the latch (kunda) of his wife’s room and found everythi