Honble BALAKRISHNAN, J.–The facts in this criminal appeal disclose acts of unparalleled evil and barbarity as five persons of a family was battered to death without mercy by a young culprit aged about 20 years.

(2). PW-17 Shiv Pratap, his wife, three daughters and aged parents were residing in a house at Bidasar. The marriage of the eldest daughter of Shiv Pratap was fixed to be held on 20.2.1994. In order to purchase some articles for the marriage, Shiv Pratap and his wife Bhanwari had left for Jaipur on 14.12.1993. They came back to Bidasar from Jaipur on 17.12.1993 at about 9.30 PM. On reaching the house, they found the outer door of the house open and the inside room was found bolted from within. PW-17 knocked at the door in vain and after some time he scaled over the wall and gained entry into the room. He found his parents lying dead with multiple injuries. PW-17 and his wife then went to the room of their daughters. That room was found locked from outside. PW-17 broke open the lock and found dead bodies of his three daughters. Various blood-stained articles were found strewn in the room. PW-17 used to peg the bag containing gold and silver jewellery of the shop. That bag was also found missing. Shocked at the incident, they made a hue and cry. The brother of PW-17 who was staying nearby came to the house. Some neighbours also came there in the meanwhile and saw the ghastly incident. By about 9.45 P.M., PW-17 gave the P-8 statement before the Station House Officer of Police Station Chhapar (PW.23). PW-23 registered a case and immediately visited the place of occurrence. He recorded the statement of Bhanwari (PW.1); Murlidhar (PW-2) and also the further statement of Shiv Pratap (PW-17). On the next day, he took various photographs and conducted inquest of the dead bodies of all the five deceased persons. The various articles, including clothes found lying in the house, were recovered. Many of these articles were found blood-stained.

(3). In his statement, PW-2, Murlidhar mentioned that on the evening of 14.12.1993, he had seen the deceased Jora Ram, the father of Shiv Pratap, at about 6.00 PM going to his house after closing the shop and the appellant, Shri Bhag- wan was also accompanying him. PW-2 further stated that Shri Bhagwan was known to him previously as he had worked in the shop of Shiv Pratap for about 8 to 10 months. He also stated that he saw the appellant and Jora Ram entering the house of Shiv Pratap. Based on this information, appellant Shri Bhagwan was arrested on the night of 18.12.1993 and the investigation of the case was taken over by PW-24. He too visited the place of occurrence and collected various articles from there. A broken iron `Kunta, a wooden Pestle and an iron scissors were also recovered from the scene of occurrence and all these articles were stained with blood. The appellant was interrogated and based on his statement, an axe was recovered from the water tank located on the terrace of the house of Shiv Pratap. During the course of further investi- gation, the appellant gave a statement regarding the place of concealment of golden jewellery and other articles taken away from the house of Shiv Pratap. Appellants bro- ther-in-law (Bahnoi) Ramu Ram was a resident of Sardar Shahar. The appellant led the police party to the house of Ramu Ram and from his house a bag containing jewellery and other articles were seized under Ex.P-83. These articles included one gold finger-ring, gold ear tops and nose tops, white pearls etc. Al these articles were later identified by Shiv Pratap as gold ornaments belonging to his mother and daughters. From the house of Ramu Ram, a small tobacco box was recovered which contai- ned 12 copper pieces and an envelope of `Kumkum Patri addressed to Shiv Pratap, Bidasar, and the senders name was one Manak Chand Soni (PW-10). Manak Chand was examined and he deposed that this invitation had been sent by him to Shiv Pratap on the occasion of the marriage of his daughter which

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