1 As the Reference and the appeal arise out of a common sessions case, we dispose them of by the following common judgment.

2 The appellant, challenging his conviction and sentence of death imposed by the learned II Additional Sessions Judge, Chennai, for an offence of murder, has preferred the above appeal and the learned Sessions Judge has made the reference for the confirmation of death sentence imposed upon him. The appellant, who, in this judgment, will be referred to as 'the accused', was tried on a charge of murder with an allegation that at 2.00 a.m. on 3.9.2001, he caused the death of his son, Shanmugasundaram @ Shanmugam, by cutting his neck and severing it and that during the course of the same transaction, he attempted to murder P.Ws.1 and 2. The learned Sessions Judge, as stated earlier, finding the accused guilty under S.302 I.P.C. and sentencing him to death, imposed a sentence of seven years R.I. under S.307 I.P.C. framed under Charge No. 2 for attempting to murder P.Ws.1 and 2.

3 The case of the prosecution is as follows: -
P.W.1 is the wife of the accused and she is also the mother of the deceased. P.W.2 is the mother inlaw of the accused. P.Ws.3 and 4 are the sons

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