JUDGMENT

R. P. SETHI, J. — This case speaks of the story of a des¬picable betrayal of connubial trust by a wife against her hus¬band. Sexual lust and extramarital relations between the un¬faithful wife and her paramour, put an end to the blooming life of an unfortunate and innocent young husband, who at the relevant time was serving the nation being in the employment of the Armed Forces. In this process of committing the crime, the wife became a marionette of her paramour. She and three killers, in order to liquidate her husband, displayed a drama in her bedroom on the fateful night. After her husband was heinously murdered she played the role of a victim of armed robbery and murder in her house and allowed herself to be gagged and tethered down. What the outsiders saw on the next morning was her being in the above condition and next to her was lying the beheaded body of her husband.

2. The prosecution case, as unfolded during the trial, is that the deceased Amar Nath who was in the Army service was married to Ms Vanaja (hereinafter referred to as “A-1”) on 11.3.1992 at Naganakotai in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh. To the misfortune of the deceased, A-1 prior to her marriage with the deceased was having illicit marital relations with Dhanajaya Reddy (hereinafter referred to as “A-2”). Both were serving together as teachers at Gnanodaya English School at Madanappalli. Nagaraj (hereinafter referred to as “A-3”) and Subramani (herein¬after referred to as “A-4”) were the associates of A-2 in the commission of crime of murder of Amar Nath. After her marriage A-1 stayed with the deceased for about four days. She declined to go with him to Delhi where the deceased was serving. In the absence of the deceased, A-1 and A-2 not only continued to serve as teachers in the school but also freely indulged in quenching the sexual lust of each other. A-1 had written letters to the deceased on his Delhi address acknowledging therein the factum of her having illicit relations with A-2 and abusing the deceased in a filthy language. To resolve the controversy of marital rela¬tions between the deceased and A-1, a panchayat was held in the parents’ house of the wife in which, besides others, Rajanna (PW 3), the father of the deceased, Krishna Reddy (PW 7), another relative of the deceased and Vamaa Reddy (PW 33), paternal uncle of A-1 were present. It was resolved in the panchayat that A- 1 should abandon her job and join the deceased. Thereafter, on his transfer, the deceased came down from Delhi to Bangalore in the month of March 1993 to work as Technician in the Madras Engineer¬ing Group Centre, a military establishment at Marutisevanagar, Bangalore. His place of work was at a distance of about 2 kilome¬tres from the house which he took on rent in Bangalore bearing No. 655, at Subbaiahanapalya Extension, Banaswadi. PWs 3 and 7 brought A-1 to Bangalore whereafter she started living with the deceased. It is alleged that before coming to Bangalore A-1 wrote three incriminating inland letters dated 5.4.1993, 9.4.1993, and 19.4.1993 marked as MOs 21, 22 and 23 to her husband. In those letters she not only used filthy language but even went to the extent of disowning the deceased as her husband, calling him impotent. In one of the letters she even threatened the deceased stating that she would be joining his company only to take re¬venge.

3. Though Accused 1 apparently started living with the deceased at Banaswadi in Bangalore, yet she was in constant contact with A-2 at Madanappalli. A-1 and A-2 are stated to have planned together to murder the deceased and for that purpose, as already noticed, A-2 procured the assistance and services of A-3 and A-4. In furtherance of his plan, A-2 had sent A-3 in advance to Bangalore on 28.8.1993 and thereafter A-2 and A-4 engaged a car bearing Registration No. AP:03 B/2349, which was driven by Narayan (PW 20) along with his cleaner Shabir Basha (PW 38). Both A-2 and A-4 along with PWs 20 and 38 left Madan