THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

DATED: 14..02..2017

CORAM

THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE S.NAGAMUTHU

AND

THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE N.SESHASAYEE

Criminal Appeal No.872 of 2016

M.Kongallaiya

... Appellant /Sole Accused

-Versus-

State Rep. by

The Inspector of Police,

Kadathur Police Station,

Erode District.

[Crime No.331 of 2013]

... Respondent

Criminal Appeal filed under Section 374(2) of Cr.P.C against

the judgement of conviction and sentence passed by the learned

Sessions Judge, Mahalir Neethimandram, [Mahila Fast Track

Court], Erode dated 29.01.2016 made in S.C.No.37/2015.

For Appellant

: Mr.C.Sivakumar

For Respondent

: Mr.P.Govindarajan,

A.P.P

JUDGEMENT

(Judgement of the Court was delivered by S.NAGAMUTHU, J.)

The appellant is the sole accused in S.C.No.37 of 2015 on

the file of the learned Sessions Judge, Mahila [Fast Track]

Court, Erode. He stood charged for offence under Section 302 and

201(i) of IPC. The trial court, by judgement dated 29.01.2016,

convicted the appellant under both the charges and sentenced him

to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/-

in default to suffer simple imprisonment for two years for

offence under Section 302 of IPC and to undergo rigorous

imprisonment for seven years and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/- in

https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/hcservices/

default to suffer simple imprisonment for two years for offence

under Section 201(i) of IPC. Challenging the above said

conviction and sentences, the accused is before this court with

this criminal appeal.

2. The case of the prosecution in brief is as follows:-

The deceased in this case was one Mrs.Meenakshi. Three years

before the occurrence, the accused married the deceased. It was

a love marriage. They were residing at the house of one

Mr.Mathialagan at Arasur Village. The accused was working in a

private company. Though three years had passed after the

marriage, they were not blessed with any child. The accused took

the deceased to a Doctor , who declared that there was no chance

for the deceased to bear a child. The accused, therefore,

decided to go in for second marriage . He requested the deceased

to give consent for the second marriage, but, the deceased

declined. Therefore, the accused decided to do away with the

deceased. It is further alleged that on 07.07.2013, when the

accused told the deceased about the impossibility of having a

child, the deceased told that they could end their lives by

committing suicide. The accused also agreed for the same. Then,

taking a nylon rope, the accused had led the deceased to a

nearby river where he tied one end of the nylon rope to his

waist and the other end to the waist of the deceased. They

both jumped into the river , but, the deceased escaped and came

to the bank. The accused got infuriated. Therefore, according

to the case, he hit the deceased, pushed her down, strangulated

her and killed her. Then, he dragged the body to a nearby bush

and abandoned the dead body there. He, thereafter, returned

home, took kerosene , went to the place of occurrence, poured

kerosene and set fire to the dead body. The occurrence was not

witnessed by anyone.

3. P.W.1, the Village Administrative Officer of

Makkinamkombai village found the dead body of the deceased in a

half burnt condition on 07.07.2013. However, the identity of

the dead body was not known. He made a complaint (Ex.P.1)to the

police on the same day. The Sub Inspector of Police, Kadathur

Police Station, on receipt of the said complaint, registered a

case in Crime No.331 of 2013 under Section 174 of Cr.P.C. for

"Suspicious Death". Ex.P.20 is the FIR. Then, he forwarded both

the complaint and the FIR to the court. Then, he handed over

the case diary to the Inspector of Police for investigation.

4. The case