IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU

DATED THIS THE 13^TH DAY OF JULY, 2021

BEFORE

THE HON9BLE Dr. JUSTICE H.B.PRABHAKARA SASTRY

CRIMINAL REVISION PETITION No.571 OF 2018

BETWEEN:

N. MOHAN

S/O NARAYAN REDDY

AGED ABOUT 40 YEARS

R/OF VANNIYAR STREET

NAYYADIPURAM

UTTARA MEROR TALUK

KANCHIPURAM, TAMIL NADU.

...PETITIONER

(BY SRI. A.N. RADHA KRISHNA, ADVOCATE)

AND:

STATE OF KARNATAKA BY

BAJPE POLICE, MANGALURU,

REPRESENTED BY

THE STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR

HIGH COURT BUILDINGS

BENGALURU 3 560 001.

..RESPONDENT

(SMT. K.P. YASHODHA, HCGP)

THIS CRIMINAL REVISION PETITION IS FILED UNDER

SECTION 397 CR.P.C. READ WITH SECTION 401 CR.P.C.

PRAYING TO SET ASIDE THE JUDGMENT OF CONVICTION

AND SENTENCE DATED 14.07.2015 IN C.C.NO.2247/2014

Crl.R.P.No.571/2018

2

PASSED BY LEARNED JMFC (II COURT), MANGALURU AND

THE

JUDGMENT

PASSED

IN

CRL.A.191/2015

DATED

24.04.2017 BY LEARNED PRINCIPAL SESSIONS COURT,

DAKSHINA

KANNADA,

MANGALURU

AND

ACQUIT

THE

PETITIONER FOR OFFENCES UNDER SECTIONS 279, 337,

338, AND 304-A OF IPC, IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE.

THIS CRIMINAL REVISION PETITION HAVING BEEN

HEARD

AND

RESERVED

THROUGH

PHYSICAL

HEARING/VIDEO CONFERENCING ON 06.07.2021, COMING

ON FOR PRONOUNCEMENT OF ORDER THROUGH PHYSICAL

HEARING/VIDEO CONFERENCING THIS DAY, THE COURT

PRONOUNCED THE FOLLOWING:

ORDER

The present petitioner was tried as accused by the

Court of learned JMFC (II Court) at Mangaluru,

(hereinafter for brevity referred to as the `Trial Court')

in C.C.No.2247/2014, for the offences punishable under

Sections 279, 337, 338 and 304A of Indian Penal Code,

1860 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as the `IPC').

2.

The summary of the case of the prosecution

is that on 25.12.2013 at about 15.10 hours on the

public way namely Moodabidre to Mangaluru road in

Gurupura Pete, Muloor Village, Mangaluru, the accused

Crl.R.P.No.571/2018

3

drove a tanker lorry bearing Registration No.TN-04-T-

1386 towards Mangaluru in a rash and negligent

manner so as to endanger human life and hit from

behind a Maruti Swift car bearing Registration No.KA-

19-Z-9710 as a result of which the said Maruti Swift car

was pushed towards right hand side of the road and

dashed against a xerox shop of C.W.5. But after hitting

the car the tanker lorry went ahead and hit another

vehicle

which

was

a

Maruti

Echo

car

bearing

Registration No. KA-21-N-0935 being driven by C.W.6.

Due to the impact, the said car dashed against an Omni

car bearing Registration No. KA-19-MB-31 and the

tanker bearing Registration No. KA-19-AA-510. The

offending tanker lorry did not stop there. It moved

ahead and dashed against a building owned by Jangama

Mutt as a result, the hotel owned by C.W.1, a tailoring

shop run by C.W.2 and a compound wall of a rented

house of C.W.3 in the said Jangama Mutt premises were

damaged. Consequently two women pedestrians were

caught under the debris as a result, both the legs of one

of those two women by name Smt. Radha Hegde

Crl.R.P.No.571/2018

4

C.W.10 were amputated, whereas another pedestrian

lady by name Smt. Sunita Kamath @ Vanamala

succumbed to the injuries sustained by her in the

incident. Thus the prosecution alleges that the rash and

negligent act of the accused resulted in simple injuries

to three inmates i.e. C.W. 7 to 9 of Echo car bearing

No.KA-21-N-9035, grievous injury to C.W.10 Smt.

Radha Hegde and death of Smt. Sunita Kamath @

Vanamala and thus accused has committed offences

punishable under Sections 279, 337, 338 and 304A of

IPC.

In order to prove the alleged guilt against the

accused, the prosecution got examined nine witnesses

from P.W.1 to P.W.15 and got marked documents from

Exs.P1 to P21. and got produced the stone and marked

it as MO-1. Accused did not enter witness box. Neither

any witness was examined nor any documents were

marked as exhibits from the side of the accused.

3.

After hearing both side, the Trial Court