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BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
HONOURABLE DR. JUSTICE G.JAYACHANDRAN
Neethirajan – Appellant
Versus
State through the Inspector of Police, South Gate Police Station – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
1. The batch of seven Criminal Appeals are against the judgment dated 22.03.2022 rendered in S.C.No.361 of 2017 on the file of IV Additional Sessions Court at Madurai.
Brief facts:
2. V. Muthuramalingam (PW-1), gave a complaint to the Therkuvasal Police on 08.06.2014 at about 21.30 hrs reporting that while he along with his daughter Dhanalakshmi and his son-in-law Alagarsami were waiting at Keelveli Veedhi Mission Hospital Bus Stop, at about 21.00 hrs, a gang of 7 known and few unknown persons armed with arruval and iron pipe came in a Auto. On seeing them his son in law tried to fled from the place, but he was surrounded by the members of the gang in front of Vetrivel Medicals few feet away from the bus stop and they attacked his son-in-law Alzagarsami with aruval and iron pipe, causing instant death. The complaint was scribed by Manikandan (PW-10) who was also an witness to the occurrence.
3. Maruthalakshmi (PW-6) the Sub-Inspector of Police attached to the Therkuvasal Police received the complaint(Ex.P-1) from PW-1 and registered the FIR in Cr.No.336 of 2014 under sections 147, 148, 341and 302 IPC and forwarded the copy of the FIR to the Judicial Magistrate through Panara
The court affirmed that involvement in an unlawful assembly and conspiracy to commit murder can establish liability, requiring only shared intent, not active participation in the crime.
Conviction for murder upheld based on unlawful assembly doctrine; presence in assembly sufficient for accountability under Section 149 IPC.
Point of Law : Unlawful assembly – Common object - No doubt section 149 IPC is wide in its sweep but in fixing the membership of the unlawful assembly and in inferring the common object various circu....
The court affirmed the conviction of the accused for murder, finding sufficient evidence of an unlawful assembly and individual culpability amid claims of inconsistencies in prosecution testimony.
The prosecution must establish a common object for unlawful assembly under Section 149 IPC; absence of motive and specific allegations can lead to acquittal.
The prosecution must prove specific overt acts of each accused in a murder case; mere presence is insufficient for conviction.
Presence in an unlawful assembly suffices for liability, affirming that minor discrepancies in testimonies do not negate the prosecution's case.
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