Circumstantial evidence, when fully established, can lead to conviction if it forms a complete chain pointing to the accused's guilt, even without direct evidence.

Dr. A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar, J. The appellant Narendra Kumar, who hails from Firozabad in the State of Uttar Pradesh, was a young man of 27 years in 2015 when he secured a job as an Assistant at Wash World Laundry that was being run by its proprietor Praveenlal along with his parents, Lalasan and Prasannakumari, and his brother Bipinlal. Two years later, he was convicted under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code [hereinafter referred to as the ' IPC '], and sentenced to death, for the brutal murder of his employer Praveenlal, and his parents Lalasan and Prasannakumari. He was also separately convicted and sentenced for the offences under Sections 397 , 457, 380 and 461 of the . While he has preferred this Appeal challenging his conviction and sentence by the trial court, the Sessions Judge, Kottayam has forwarded the entire case records to this Court for confirmation of the death sentence as provided in Section 366 (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure [hereinafter referred to as the 'Cr.P.C.']. The prosecution case

2. The case of the prosecution was that the appellant Narendra Kumar had secured employment at Wash World Laundry at Vijayapuram Panchayats, Parampuzha, Kottayam by furnishing a false name of “Jaisingh” to the proprietor Praveenlal. Within a couple of months of securing the said employment, and between 11.10 pm on 16.05.2015 and 12.34 am on 17.05.2015, the appellant committed the murder of Praveenlal, his father Lalasan and his mother Prasannakumari, by inflicting injuries on their heads and necks using an axe and a knife respectively. He then committed robbery of a gold chain and ear studs weighing 22.900 gms that was worn by the deceased Prasannakumari, the latter by cutting her ear lobes. He also committed theft of mobile phones and tablet phones owned by Praveenlal and thereafter trespassed into the neighbouring house of the proprietor’s family, broke open a wooden almirah therein and committed theft of gold bangles weighing 24.500 gms and 11.800 gms respectively, a gold ring weighing 3.900 gms, a stone laid ring weighing 1.700 gms, mobile phones, ladies and gents watches, trolley bag, torches, registers, files and Rs.3000/- that was kept on a table there. The appellant was therefore charged with having committed the offences punishable under Sections 302 , 397, 457, 380 and 461 of the IPC .

The investigation 3. The FI Statement (Ext.P1) was recorded by PW52 P.C. John, the SI of Police, Manarcad Police Station, from CW1 Blessen, the nephew of the deceased Lalasan and based on it the crime was registered as Crime No.501/2015 of Manarcad Police Station under Sections 302 and 392 IPC . Ext.P41 is the FIR. Inquests were then conducted on the bodies of the deceased and the inquest reports pertaining to Praveenlal, Lalasan and Prasannakumari are produced as Exts.P6, P7 and P8 respectively. As the appellant was found to have absconded, a team of police officers was deputed to search for him and the appellant was eventually arrested at 3.30 pm on 22.05.2015 from Firozabad. Based on statements obtained from him, the stolen articles were recovered from his house in Firozabad under Ext.P35 seizure mahazar. The appellant was thereafter brought to Kottayam and produced before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I on 25.05.2015. He was then remanded into police custody. Based on information given by him while in police custody, the police recovered the dhothi that he had worn on the night of the incident from a nearby plot.

He was later remanded to judicial custody.

Proceedings before the trial court 4. The appellant pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. In the trial that followed, the prosecution examined 56 witnesses as PW1 to PW56 and marked Exts.P1 to P60 series of documents. The witnesses also identified MO’s 1 to 42 series. Thereafter the appellant was examined under Section 313 Cr.P.C and also heard under Section 232 Cr.P.C. Not finding him entitled to an acquittal at that stage, the appel