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Digitally

signed by

ANURADHA

ANURADHA TIWARI

TIWARI Date:

2026.01.31 1

16:41:34

+0530

2026:CGHC:5208-DB

NAFR

HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR

CRA No. 1646 of 2021

Kanhaiyaram Rawate S/o Shri Chintaram Rawate Aged About 40 Years

R/o Village Mandalpara Acholi, Police Chouwki Sanjari Thana

Doundilohara, District Balod Chhattisgarh.

... Appellant

versus

State of Chhattisgarh Through Officer In Charge Police Station

Doundilohara, District Balod Chhattisgarh.

... Respondents

(Cause-title taken from Case Information System)

For Appellant : Mr. B.P. Rao , Advocate

For Respondent-State : Mr. Nitansh Jaiswal, Deputy Government

Advocate

Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice

Hon'ble Shri Ravindra Kumar Agrawal, Judge

Judgment on Board

Per Ramesh Sinha , Chief Justice

30.01.2026

1. The appellant has preferred this appeal under Section 374(2) of

Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short, ‘Cr.P.C.’) questioning

the impugned judgment dated 28.10.2021 passed by the learned

First Additional Sessions Judge, Balod, District Balod (C.G.) in

Sessions Trial No.26/2019, whereby the trial Court has convicted

2

the appellant for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the

Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, ‘IPC’) and sentenced to

undergo life imprisonment and fine of Rs.500/-, in default of

payment of fine amount, additional rigorous imprisonment for 30

days.

2. Brief facts of the case, in a nutshell, are that on 13.04.2019 at about

10:20 a.m., at village Achholi, the accused Kanhaiyaram Rawte, his

father Chintaram Rawte, and his mother Hemimbai were engaged

in a quarrel and were hurling abuses at each other. During the

altercation, the accused questioned his father as to why he had

kept his wife Kavita in the house and why he did not drive her out.

Agitated by this issue, the accused threatened that he would not

spare his father that day, went inside his house, brought a plastic

container containing petrol along with a matchbox, poured petrol on

his father and set him on fire by striking a match.

3. On seeing Chintaram burning, the villagers rushed to the spot and

extinguished the fire. Chintaram, who had sustained severe burn

injuries, was first taken to the Community Health Centre, Donde

Lohara, and thereafter, on being referred, was shifted the same day

to the District Hospital, Rajnandgaon. Upon receipt of information,

the police outpost Sankra and Police Station Donde Lohara

immediately reached the spot, conducted preliminary inquiry and

registered a Dehati Nalishi (Ex. P-1). A spot map (Ex. P-2) was

prepared and from the place of occurrence, in the presence of

3

witnesses, one partially burnt piece of cloth, burnt ash, a burnt

matchstick, a green plastic container containing about 100 ml of

petrol, petrol-soaked soil and plain soil were seized vide seizure

memo (Ex. P-6).

4. During investigation, the memorandum statement of the accused

was recorded (Ex. P-5), pursuant to which a matchbox containing

six unused matchsticks was seized in the presence of witnesses

vide seizure memo (Ex. P-7). On the basis of Dehati Nalishi, FIR

(Ex. P-20) was registered under Section 307 of the IPC. Statements

of witnesses under Section 161 Cr.P.C. were recorded and the

accused was arrested on 13.04.2019. While undergoing treatment,

on 13.04.2019 at about 2:10 p.m., Chintaram Rawte succumbed to

his burn injuries at District Hospital, Rajnandgaon. Consequently,

merg intimation was recorded and postmortem examination of the

deceased was conducted on 14.04.2019. After completion of

investigation, the seized articles were sent to the Forensic Science

Laboratory for examination.

5. Upon finding that the accused had caused the death of his father,

charge-sheet was filed against him under Section 302 IPC before

the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Dondilohara, District Balod, who

committed the case to the Court of Session.

6. The trial Court has framed charges against the appellant for the

offence punishable under Sections 302 of the IPC and proceeded

on trial. The appellant abjured the guilt and entered in