K.M. NATARAJAN, J.

The accused in S.C. No. 119 of 1986 on the file of the II Additional Sessions Judge, Tirunelveli, has preferred this appeal challenging the legality and correctness of the conviction under S. 302 read with S. 34 I.P.C. and sentence of life imprisonment and also under S. 324, I.P.C. and sentence of rigorous imprisonment for one year both the sentences to run concurrently.

2. The appellant was tried for the above two charges on the allegation that on 27-4-1985 at or about 9.15 a.m. at Meenakshipuram, he along with three others caused the death of the deceased Natarajan alias Subbiah-A1 stabbing him on the chest as well as the hip with aruval while A2 attacking him with tharangu on the right arm and during the course of the same transaction the appellant, who is A1, cut P.W. 1 Gurusami with aruval on his left hand above the wrist and caused a simple injury. To substantiate the above two charges the prosecution examined P.Ws. 1 to 7, filed Exs. P1 to P17 and marked M.Os. 1 to 8.

3. The case of the prosecution as disclosed from the oral and documentary evidence can be succinctly stated as follows :

A1 and A2 are brothers and sons of A3. A4 is the brother of A3. The deceased is one Natarajan alias Subbiah. P.W. 5 and the deceased are stepbrothers born through the same father. P.W. 5 married P.W. 1s eldest sister. P.W. 6 is the wife of P.W. 1. They are all residents of Meenakshipuram village. In the year 1981 there was a competition with regard to Kabadi game at Meenakshipuram in which A2 was successful and he defeated the deceased. It is further stated that A1 and A2, on account of a quarrel, beat the deceased Natarajan. This was witnessed by P.Ws. 1 and 5. A few days later, the deceased stabbed A2 with a knife. In respect of the same a complaint was given to Eppothum Vendran Police station and a case was registered in Crime No. 2 of 1981 under S. 324 I.P.C., and the deceased was prosecuted and he was convicted. It is further stated that on appeal he was acquitted. After the said case, the deceased left the village and was staying at Virudunagar and was employed as a taxi driver and he used to come twice or thrice in a month to the village since his family was at Meenakshipuram. It is the further case of the prosecution that the deceased came to the village on the day of occurrence 27-4-1985, and he along with P.Ws. 1 to 5 was heaping hayrick and they used a plank for the said purpose. At that time P.W. 4. came there. A little later, A1 came there armed with a kozhival aruval and called P.W. 6 to accompany him to the house of his master Kumar in order to receive the wages. At that time, the deceased found fault with A1 for having brought the aruval there and questioned him. A1 was murmuring and left the place. After completing the work, P.Ws. 1, 4 and 6 and others left the place for taking their meals. P.W. 1 and the deceased, after taking coffee in the house of Aruna chalam, who is none other than the father-in-law of the deceased and after staying there for some time, were proceeding to answer calls of nature. While they were proceeding from south to north A1 to A4 came in opposite direction and at that time A1 was armed with aruval and A2 with kuthu tharangu. A2 instigated the other accused to cut and kill the deceased and so A2 shouted by saying that the deceased had come and he should be cut and killed and so saying he stabbed the deceased on his right arm with kuthu tharangu. A1 cut him with aruval on the chest forcefully. At that time P.W. 1 beat A1 with a plank which he was having on the back and broke it into pieces which are marked as M.Os. 1 and 2. Immediately A1 cut P.W. 1 above the left wrist once. A3 threw a stone on the chest of P.W. 1. In the meantime, after receipt of the injury the deceased went to a distance of 4 Bagams (8 yards) and caught hold of the wall and standing. A1 ran towards him and also cut him across the hip twice with aruval. On receipt of the injury the deceased fel