The judgment emphasizes the significance of circumstantial evidence, the admissibility of confessional statements, and the relevance of motive in proving a crime.

P. K. MOHANTY, J.

( 1 ) THIS is an appeal by the convict in a case under section 302 IPC sentencing him to undergo life imprisonment.

( 2 ) PROSECUTION case, bereft of unnecessary details is that on 16-11-1989 at about 8 P. M. while Damodar Patel, P. W. 1 had gone to attend the call of nature near river Hati, he found one dead body lying on the sandy bed of the river. The dead body was without any wearing apparel except one chadi. Pant and Shirt were lying at a distance from the dead body. One motor cycle bearing Regn. No. (sic) 2488 was kept by the side of the pillar of the bridge. Damodar Patel, P. W. 1 came to village Katpadi and told the incident to Madhu Naik, Ward Member of the village. P. W. 1 along with Madhu Naik, came to the police station at Jaipatna and orally reported the incident in the Police Station. P. W. 21, the Investigating Officer on the report registered M. D. Case No. 9 of 1989 in absence of the Officer-In-Charge of the Police Station. The Investigating Officer while conducting the enquiry found bleading injury on the right side of the neck of the deceased lying in the river bed of Hati river. The Investigating Officer suspected it to be a homicidal death. He held inquest over the dead body on 16-11-89 at 4 P. M. at the spot and drew up a plain paper FIR Ext. 17. The dead body was sent to postmortem examination. The dead body was identified to be of Pramod Kumar Padhi. On completion of the investigation, charge-sheet was submitted against the accused-appellant.

( 3 ) THE plea of the defence was complete denial. It was the stand of the accused that he was staying at a place called Mukhiguda along with one Dinabandhu Barik in quarter No. F/89 in Sector 2 and was taking up contract work with the licence of one Sarat Chandra Das.

( 4 ) PROSECUTION has examined as many as 34 witnesses to establish its case. P. W. 1 Damodar Patel is the informant who reported the matter at Jaipatna Police Station on which M. D. Case was started, P. W. 2 Siba Sankar Padhi is the father of the deceased, who identified the dead body of the deceased but found the gold chain which is usually worn by the deceased was missing. P. W. 3 is Istaque Ahammad who deposed that the deceased wanted to purchase a revolver about a month prior to the date of occurrence. P. W. 4 is a witness to the inquest and seizure of Bullet Motor cycle, blood-stained sand and identified the dead body. P. W. 5 is Pabitra Kumar Padhi who took zima of the motor cycle belonging to the deceased. P. W. 6 is the constable who removed the dead body for postmortem and produced the wearing Chadi of the deceased after postmortem. P. W. 7, Madhusudan Pillai is a witness who found the accused standing on the Char-choak in front of the shop of one Rao, P. W. 8 is Binayak Behera, who found the deceased and accused moving together in a motor-cycle at Mukhiguda and the deceased told him that he was to purchase a revolver from the accused. P. W. 9 is Udayanath Panigrahi, who also found the accused and deceased together taking tea in the shop of one Rao at Char-chouk on 15-11-89 and further found the accused going to purchase one Rin soap on credit. P. W. 10, Chaitanya Majhi has stated that he saw the accused taking pan at about 11 A. M. of 15-11-89 and proceeded with the driver of a tripper. P. W. 11, Madhaba Durga who found the deceased and driver of the tripper Dinabandhu Barik going towards the river bed to attend the call of nature after loading sand in the tripper. He also found the driver of the tripper Dinabandhu Barik sitting on the motor cycle at the time of loading of the sand and came to know at about 2 P. M. that a man was murdered on the river bed. P. W. 12 is Pramil Kumar Panda, who has stated that on 15-11-89 the accused enquired from him about the deceased. P. W. 13, Malaya Chandra Meher has stated about the fact that the accused purchased a soap at about 9. 15 P. M. on 15-11-89 and P. W. 14 Pradumna Kumar Meher who accompanied him found the accused was was