IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD R/CRIMINAL APPEAL (AGAINST CONVICTION) NO. 1183 of 2017 FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA and HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P. M. RAVAL ==========================================================

Approved for Reporting Yes No ==========================================================

BHUVAL CHHEDILAL SAROJ(PASIPASVAN)

Versus STATE OF GUJARAT ==========================================================

Appearance:

HCLS COMMITTEE(4998) for the Appellant(s) No. 1 MR MATAFER R PANDE(3952) for the Appellant(s) No. 1 MR VINAY VISHEN, APP for the Opponent(s)/Respondent(s) No. 1 ==========================================================

CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA and HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P. M. RAVAL Date : 29/07/2025

ORAL JUDGMENT

(PER : HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P. M. RAVAL)

1. The appellant is before this Court under the provisions of Section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 against the judgment and order of conviction dated 21.2.2017 passed in Sessions Case No.38 of 2015 by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Navsari convicting the appellant accused under section 302 of Indian Penal Code by imposing sentence of life imprisonment and ordered to pay a fine of Rs.2000/-, in default, to undergo further two years rigorous imprisonment and also sentenced him under section 135 of Gujarat Police Act for six months and also ordered to pay a fine of Rs.500/-, in default, to undergo further one month rigorous imprisonment. Both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

2. The facts of the case in nutshell are as follows :

2.1 It is the case of the prosecution that on 12.10.2014, the complainant Shakir Mahammad Jamati who is the neighbour of the accused was called by his wife to immediately come to the residence as she had seen from the window of the neighbour i.e. accused’s house that there is blood on the floor and that house is locked, after which the complainant informed the owner of the shop where he was working and where the accused was also working and the police was called; thereafter, the door was broken opened and dead body of the accused’s wife was found on the floor and blood was also oozing out. On the basis of the aforesaid facts, the FIR came to be registered before the Chikhli Police Station being CR No.I - 169 of 2014.

2.2 After completion of investigation, the chargesheet was filed before the concerned jurisdictional Magistrate which came to be registered as Criminal Case No.43 of 2015. Since the case was exclusively triable by the court of Sessions, the same was committed before the learned Sessions Court and was registered as Sessions Case No.38 of 2015.

2.3 Vide Exh.12, the charge was framed against the accused. Vide Exh.13 plea of the accused was recorded and having denied the charges, the trial was conducted wherein the prosecution relied upon the following witnesses and documentary evidences.

ORAL EVIDENCES :