The prosecution must prove guilt beyond all reasonable doubt; circumstantial evidence needs to establish a complete chain of events without gaps for a conviction.

1.This is a reference under S.366 of the Code of Criminal Procedure , as the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Khairagarh (Sessions Division Rajanandgaon) in Sessions trial No. 64/2000, vide its judgment dated 29-9-2000, finding the accused guilty under S.302, IPC has awarded extreme penalty / capital punishment. The accused being aggrieved by the judgment and sentences awarded to him has filed Criminal Appeal No. 2653/2000 challenging the correctness, propriety and validity of the judgment and the findings recorded by it.

2. This judgment shall dispose of Criminal Reference No. 1/2000 and Criminal Appeal No. 2653/2000.

3. The charge against the accused is that in between 9th October, 1999 and 13th October, 1999 he committed murder of his mother Khwajan Bi and thereby committed an offence punishable under S.302, IPC. The accused was also charged for an offence punishable under S.201, IPC on the ground that to cause dis - appearance of the material evidence; after cutting the body of his mother into pieces, he packed the same in different bags, threw some bags in a rivulet (nala) and some were burried in a pit used for stacking / placing the cow - dung.

4. The prosecution case is brief is that on 13-10-99 Sheikh Mohd. PW 7 (son of the accused) and Mohd. Chand PW 1 (first cousin of the accused) informed the police that Sheikh Mohd. had gone to his in - laws place on 3-10-99; after his return on 11-10-99 when he came to his house he found that his grand - mother Khwajan Bi was missing since 9-10-99 and her where - abouts were not known to anybody. He also reported that Khwajan Bi was a vegetable vendor, who left some tomateos with Shyambai who informed him that Khwajan Bi was not traceable. He also informed the police that people were whispering in the village that some parts of the body were lying in a rivulet; on that he along with Mohd. Chand, Azmal and one Rathore went to the spot where he found a piece of right hand which was wearing some ornaments and at some distance a leg was lying. He informed the police that after identifying the said ornaments he was convinced that the pieces of the body recovered were of his grandmother's body. He also informed the police that at some distance a bag was lying under water, from which bad smell was coming. The said information was recorded at marg No. 13/99 on 13-10-99 at about 11.50 p.m. The said recorded information has been exhibited as Ext. P / 15. After receiving the information nothing was done on 13-10-99, but the police officer came to the said rivulet on 14-10-99. He recovered the pieces of the leg and hand which were identified by Sheikh Mohd. and Mohd. Chand. Seizure of the said articles were effected, thereafter, Dehati - nalishi was lodged by PW 1 Mohd. Chand. Memo of corpus (Naksha Panchayat Nama of the deadbody) was prepared; first information report was registered; on information received from the accused remaining parts of the body were recovered from a pit and almost at the same time an axe, sickle and kurta (long shirt) belonging to the accused were recovered.

5. According to the prosecution the accused had some differences with his own mother because she had gifted or given away some part of the agricultural land to her daughter i.e. sister of the accused. The accused taking an exception to the conduct of his mother was publicly saying that some day he would murder his mother and cut her into pieces. On 14-10-99 the accused was arrested. After recovery of different pieces of the body, same were sent for post mortem. The doctor opined that cause of death was asphyxia due to throttling and body was cut into pieces after the death of the deceased.

6. On co