2025:CGHC:58801-DB Digitally signed by ANURADHA NAFR ANURADHA TIWARI TIWARI Date:

2025.12.04

17:48:53 +0530 HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR CRA No. 1527 of 2021 Budhram Bharti S/o Ishwar Bharti Aged About 36 Years R/o Matnar Village, Station Nagarnar, District- Bastar (C.G.)

... Appellant versus State of Chhattisgarh Through- Police Station Nagarnar, District- Bastar (C.G.)

... Respondent (Cause-title taken from Case Information System)

For Appellant : Mr. Ashutosh Singh Kachhawaha, Advocate For Respondent : Mr. Malay Jain, Panel Lawyer Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice Hon'ble Shri Bibhu Datta Guru, Judge Judgment on board Per Ramesh Sinha, C hief Justice

04.12.2025

1. This criminal appeal filed by the appellant-accused under Section

374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short, “Cr.P.C.”) is directed against the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 22.10.2021, passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Bastar at Jagdalpur (C.G.) in Sessions Trial No.60/2019, whereby the appellant-accused has been convicted for offence under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, ‘IPC’) and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and fine of Rs.1,000/-, in default of payment of fine amount, to further undergo additional rigorous imprisonment for three months.

2. Brief facts of the case, in a nutshell, are that the complainant, Smt. Balo Bharti (PW-2), was residing in village Talnar under Police Station Nagarnar and was engaged in agricultural and labour work for her livelihood. Her house was situated adjacent to the residence of the accused, Budhram Bharti, who was her husband’s paternal cousin, and also to that of her uncle-in-law, the deceased Ishwar Bharti. On 14.08.2019, when the complainant’s husband was away for work, she remained at home along with her daughter Chapala and mother-in-law Ramrati. At about 9:00 PM, after having dinner, the complainant and her daughter stepped out to wash their hands. At that moment, they allegedly saw the accused, Budhram Bharti, running from his house towards the street while holding a thick firewood log and shouting that he had killed his father, referring to Ishwar Bharti, and thereafter fleeing from the scene. Alarmed by this, the complainant, accompanied by her daughter and mother-in-law, rushed to the first room of Ishwar Bharti’s house, where they found him lying face down on the floor. Neighbours Puran Bharti and Santram Bharti were immediately called, but despite their efforts, Ishwar Bharti was found unresponsive, his pulse absent and body cold. Upon removing his clothes, a visible injury was noticed on the right side of his chest. The complainant thereafter informed her husband telephonically and proceeded to lodge a report at Police Station Nagarnar. The prosecution case is that, owing to a family dispute, the accused assaulted the deceased with the firewood log, resulting in his death.

3. On the same night, at about 11:50 PM, Sub-Inspector Khomraj Thakur (PW-13) received telephonic information from a villager regarding the incident. Shortly thereafter, the complainant appeared at the police station and orally reported the matter, pursuant to which the Rural Merg Intimation (Ex. P-5) and Rural Nalsi (Ex. P-6) were registered at 00:30 AM on 15.08.2019. Consequently, FIR No. 190/2019 (Ex. P-26) was lodged. The dead body was thereafter sent to the morgue at Medical College, Dimrapal, where inquest proceedings (Ex. P-9) were conducted. Constable Satyaprakash Goyal (PW-8) was deputed with the postmortem application (Ex. P-18), and upon completion of the postmortem examination, the body was handed over to the family.

4. During the course of the investigation, the Investigating Officer prepared the spot map (Ex. P-7) at about 9:30 AM on 15.08.2019. On the same day, the memorandum statement of the accused (Ex. P-12) was recorded under Section 27 of the Evidence Act, pursuant to which the alleged weapon of offence, namely the firewood log was reco