The reliability of witness testimony is critical, especially in murder cases; inadmissible evidence and procedural lapses can lead to wrongful convictions.

1. This is an appeal by the convict, the appellant hereinafter, under S.374(2) of the Cr.P.C. against the judgment dated 14.07.2014 delivered in Sessions Trial No.164 of 2013 by the Addl. Sessions Judge, No.4, West Tripura, Agartala. By the said judgment dated 14.07.2014, the appellant has been convicted under S.302 read with S.120B and S.109 of the I.P.C. The appellant has been further convicted by the same judgment under S.120B / 109 read with S.109 of the I.P.C, under S.302 read with S.111 and S.113 of the I.P.C and under S.201 of the I.P.C. As consequence of the said judgment, by the order dated 17.07.2014, the appellant has been sentenced to suffer imprisonment for life, meaning the whole natural life i.e. till his death, for committing the offence punishable under S.302 read with S.120B and S.109 of the I.P.C. with fine of Rs.50,000/- (Rupees Fifty thousand). The appellant has been further sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for a period of 3(three) years for commission of the offence punishable under S.120B, S.109 read with S.34 of the I.P.C. and to pay fine of Rs.5,000/- (Rupees Five thousand). He has been further sentenced to suffer imprisonment for life for committing the offence punishable under S.302 read with S.111 and S.113 of the I.P.C. with fine of Rs.10,000/- (Rupees ten thousand). The appellant has been sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 2(two) years for committing the offence punishable under S.201 of the I.P.C. with fine of Rs.5,000/-(Rupees five thousand). It has been directed that the sentences shall run concurrently and the fine if not realized that shall be leviable in terms of S.70 of the I.P.C.

2. Genesis of the prosecution against the appellant is rooted in the ejahar filed by Smt. Niyati Deb (Ghosh), PW - 40 on 19.05.2013 disclosing that on 19.05.2013 when her daughter Papiya Ghosh (PW - 1) was inside their room, she heard some sounds from the upstairs of their room. Her daughter also told her that some sounds were coming from the upstairs of their room where the office of Ranjit Choudhury was situated. Reacting to that, she came out from her room and went to the ground floor of Ganadoot Office and found that 'one youth (aged around 25-26 years wearing jeans and green coloured ganjee had been stabbing Sujit Bhattacharjee, Proof Reader with the help of a dagger by way of felling him down on the floor inside the office, seeing this I had called my husband, Balaram Ghosh raising alarm then at first daughter, namely, Papiya came out from our room and seeing the incident she started crying. In the meantime the accused have been stabbing Sujit with the help of a dagger. My husband came out from the room and seeing this incident cried out and proceeded to resist. Then the said miscreants had stabbed my husband and my husband fell down on the floor. Just at that time
(I) found another miscreant was coming to the ground floor through the stair cases from the office room of Ranjit Choudhury on the upstairs. I found a wire in his hand. His age was also around 25-26 years. They i.e. 2 (two) miscreants had fled away after killing two persons on the ground floor with the help of the dagger and killing another named Ranjit Choudhury, Manager in the upstairs which I found after going over there. On getting an information of the said incident, the police personnel came to the place of the occurrence and sent these 3(three) severely injured persons to the hospital and a few minutes later (I) came to learn that my husband and other 2(two) injured persons had succumbed to the stab injuries caused by this miscreants. - (As translated by the translation department