The court affirmed the conviction for murder based on credible eyewitness testimony and consistent medical evidence, establishing the appellant’s guilt under Section 302 IPC.

JUDGMENT :

ANANDA SEN, J.

1. This Criminal Appeal is preferred on behalf of the appellant being aggrieved by the judgment of conviction dated 18.09.2014 and order of sentence dated 20.09.2014, passed by learned Additional Sessions Judge-II, Garhwa, in Sessions Trial No.32 of 2011, arising out of Dhurki P.S. Case No.46 of 2010, whereby and wherein the appellant has been convicted for offence alleged to have been committed under Section 302 IPC. He was sentenced to undergo Life Imprisonment with fine of Rs.5,000/- and in default of payment of fine amount, further to undergo Simple Imprisonment for three months.

2. Learned counsel representing the appellant submitted that from injuries it would be clear that the manner in which the occurrence had taken place, as narrated by the prosecution witnesses is not correct. He further stated that eye-witnesses i.e. P.W.-3 and P.W.-4 could not be said to have seen the occurrence as they stated that they were not present at the place of occurrence. The informant is admittedly a hearsay witness and two witnesses Sukhlal Gaur and Ramjanam Bhuian have been declared hostile. Rest of the evidence contradicts each other and due to land dispute this appellant has been falsely implicated in this case. He tried to raise a dispute about the presence of the eye-witnesses on the place of occurrence when the alleged incident had occurred to create doubt in the mind of this Court about their authenticity.

3. Learned A.P.P. opposes the prayer and submits that P.W.- 3, P.W.-4 and P.W.-5 are eye witnesses who are present at the place of occurrence and they had seen how the incident had occurred. It is the prosecution case that the deceased was assaulted by a sharp cutting weapon on the neck and the medical evidence also proved the ocular evidence.

4. The case of the prosecution as delineated in the First Information Report on the basis of the fardbayan of informant- Ramchandra Bhuian, is that on 20.09.2010, at 07:30 P.M. evening, one Ramnarayan Gaur came running to his house and told him that a serious misadventure has taken place. He further told that one Birendra Bhuian has assaulted his brother Anmesh Bhuian @ Lala Bhuian with tangi on the back of his head, as a result of which brother of the informant succumbed to death and when he chased Birendra, he fled away. The body of the deceased – Anmesh Bhuian @ Lala Bhuian is lying at his courtyard. After getting this information, when the informant along with his family member went to the place of occurrence, he saw that his brother was lying dead in the courtyard of Ramnarayan Gaur and large quantity of blood oozed out of the body. On enquiry, Ramjanam Bhuian, Sukhlal Gaur and Ramnarayan Gaur, told that one lamp was burning in the courtyard and all three of them were gossiping with each other. When Anmesh Bhuian came towards the wife of Ramnarayan Gaur and bowed his head in obeisance, then suddenly Birendra Bhuian came from the back and gave a blow of tangi on the back of the neck of the deceased. Thereafter he fled away with tangi. They tied patti on the head of brother of the informant but by then he died. They told that there was a previous enmity with Ram Nath Bhuian. The deceased brother of the informant returned home from work prior to 2-3 days of the incident and in order to meet the family members, he went to the house of Ramnarayan Gaur, but owing to previous enmity, Birendra Bhuian @ Putu Bhuian, killed brother of the informant with tangi in the courtyard, and fled away.

5. On the basis of said fardbayan, Dhurki P.S. C