BEHERA, J.

( 1 ) HANGING in the balance between life and death with an order of conviction recorded by the Court of Session against him under S. 302, Penal Code (for short, the Code) with a direction that he be hanged by the neck till he is dead, the accused-convict (described hereinafter as the 'appellant') has appealed against the judgment and order. The learned Sessions Judge has made a reference to this Court for confirmation of the sentence of death. The death reference and the criminal appeal have been heard together and will be governed by this judgment.

( 2 ) THE case of the prosecution and the plea of the appellant have been set out in details in the judgment of the trial court. There had been land dispute between the appellant and his mother Labanya, who also figured as a co-accused being charged of abetment of the commission of the offence of murder by the appellant, on the one hand and Hadiani alias Urbasi Pradhan (hereinafter described as the 'deceased'), born through step-mother of the appellant, on the other, over the properties left by Kaira Pradhan, his father. After the deceased successfully instituted a suit against the appellant and obtained a decree and had o