Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Aug 31: High Court has upheld the life sentence awarded by the trial court to the accused for murder of a girl child citing that the prosecution has proved the charges against the accused.
The Criminal Conviction Appeal was directed by the appellant- Bhagwat Das of Kaljerni Dhaka, Jarkhand against the judgment of conviction rendered by the court of Principal Sessions Judge Kargil in FIR registered with the Police Station Kargil for commission of offence punishable under Section 302 RPC.
The accused-Das in 2013 was held guilty, convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment and fine of Rs 5000 for murder which he committed in 2010 of one small baby girl of 3 years of age. He approached HC in 2018 and appealed against the judgement.
The Division Bench of Justice V C Koul and Justice Mohan Lal after examination of the entire prosecution evidence viewed that the prosecution has been able to prove the charges against appellant-accused punishable under Section 302 RPC beyond reasonable doubt.
“Therefore, the conviction of the appellant-accused for the charge deserves to be upheld. Resultantly, the instant appeal directed by appellant stands dismissed, while the conviction and sentence rendered by the trial court against the appellant for commission of offence under section 302 RPC stands confirmed and upheld” court said adding with “The jail authorities where the appellant is presently lodged and serving the term of imprisonment be also informed accordingly”.
Underscoring the apex court on such issued, the DB said, in a case of circumstantial evidence, before the case can be said to be fully established against an accused, it is necessary that the circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt is to be drawn, should be fully established, and all the facts so established should be consistent only with the hypothesis of the guilt of the accused.
“They should not be explainable on any other hypothesis except that the accused is guilty. The circumstances should be of a conclusive nature and tendency. They should exclude every hypothesis except the one to be proved”, DB added.
Court said that there must be a chain of evidence so complete as not to leave any reasonable ground for the conclusion consistent with the innocence of the accused and must show that in all human probabilities, the act must have been done by the accused.
The complainant (mother of deceased child) in her complaint and in her statement has categorically levelled allegations of murder of her minor deceased child against her husband appellant/convict and stated in regard to motive behind the killing as appellant-accused wanted to get rid of the burden of children of former husband of his wife as he (accused) use to complain his wife by rebuking, threatening and thrashing them, because of which their relations remained strained as accused always tortured her for having children of former husband which he has taken burden to feed.
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