THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE K.SURENDER AND THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE E.V.VENUGOPAL CRIMINAL APPEAL No.273 of 2019

JUDGMENT:

(Per Hon’ble Sri Justice K.Surender)

This Criminal Appeal is filed by the appellant/accused aggrieved by the judgment dated 05.02.2019 in S.C. No.351 of 2016, on the file of the I Additional Sessions Judge, Warangal, for the offence punishable under Section 302 of IPC.

2. Heard learned counsel for the appellant and Sri M.Vivekananda Reddy, learned Assistant Public Prosecutor for respondent – State. Perused the record.

3. Smt.Veeraganti Sharada (hereinafter referred to as ‘the deceased’) was taken to the MGM Hospital, Warangal, with 45% burn injuries. Initially, PW.9 attended to the victim. He gave requisition for recording the dying declaration. The Jurisdictional Magistrate/PW.16, on the basis of the requisition given, went to MGM Hospital around 4.20 P.M, and recorded the dying declaration of the deceased. In the narration given to the Magistrate, the deceased stated that she was married 16 years prior to the incident. The appellant is addicted to gudumba (country liquor). For the past 6 months, they had incurred debts of Rs.2,00,000/- for the construction of their house. On the said day, there was a quarrel between the deceased and the appellant. While the deceased was leaving the home, the appellant poured kerosene on her and set her on fire. The son of the deceased admitted her into the hospital.

4. Thereafter, the Sub-Inspector of Police/PW.18, Mills Colony Police Station, went to the hospital and recorded the statement of the deceased. In the statement made to PW.18, the deceased stated that she was married to the appellant and they have two sons. The appellant was addicted to alcohol and used to beat her and abuse her in filthy language. She complained to her family members, who, in turn, warned the appellant. However, there was no change in the attitude of the appellant. The appellant used to incur debts for consuming alcohol, and all these debts were cleared by the deceased. Further, the deceased narrated that the appellant informed her that she could stay with anyone;

however, she had to take care of his needs. On the day of the incident, while the deceased was eating food, the appellant came to the house in a drunken condition, threw the food outside, abused her, poured kerosene on her, and set her on fire. The deceased went outside and poured water on herself. In the meanwhile, PW.4/brother-in-law of the deceased called for the ambulance. The younger son shifted the deceased to the hospital. She further narrated that she received burns on her stomach, chest, back, and left arm.

5. Though statements were made to the Magistrate and also the Sub-Inspector of Police/PW.18, however, a Telugu written complaint was filed by the mother of the deceased, who was examined as PW.1, and the same was handed over to the police on 14.03.2015. The said complaint was registered for the offences under Sections 498A and 307 of IPC. Thereafter, while undergoing the treatment, the deceased died on 05.05.2015, i.e., 40 days after the incident. The section of law was altered to Section 302 of IPC. Having completed the investigation, the charge sheet was filed.

6. The learned Sessions Judge found favor with the dying declarations that were recorded by the Magistrate and the Police and convicted the appellant, though all the witnesses turned hostile to the prosecution case and did not speak about any harassment meted out by the appellant.

7. Learned counsel appearing for the appellant would submit that once the statements made to the Police and the Magistrate, which are Exs.P19 and P.23, are looked into, there are any amount of variations, and the only logical conclusion is that the deceased has falsely framed the appellant. In fact, such contradictory versions cannot be taken into consideration. Learned counsel further argued that though the Court considers that the truth lies on the dying man’s lips, however, the contradic