Kishore Bhadke Vs State of Maharashtra

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[REPORTABLE]

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 467/2010

Kishore Bhadke ……….Appellant

Vs.

State of Maharashtra ……..Respondent

WITH

Criminal Appeal No.854/2010 & Criminal Appeal No.11/2015

J U D G M E N T

A.M.KHANWILKAR,J.

These appeals are filed by the original accused No.1

(Crl.A.No.854/2010), accused No.3 (Crl.A.No.467/2010) and

accused No.6 (Crl.A.No.11/2015). They were tried for offence

punishable under Sections 364, 302, 201 read with 34/120-B of

Indian Penal Code (IPC) along with four other accused.

2. The prosecution case is that, on 10th May 2003, Shriniwas son

of Wasudeorao Tonpe lodged a report (Exh.154) that his elder

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brother Raman has gone missing since morning of 8th May 2003.

On the basis of that report, a missing Register entry was effected by

the Police Station, Narkhed, District Nagpur (Maharashtra). On the

next day i.e. 11th May 2003 another brother of the missing person,

Madan son of Wasudeorao Tonpe lodged a second report (Exh.68)

suspecting that accused No.1- Nalini, her husband Vijay Dhpake,

accused No.2-Rinku, and accused No.7- Suresh Chandra might

have abducted his brother Raman in order to commit his murder.

On the basis of this report, Police Station registered an offence

punishable under Section 364 read with Section 34 of IPC against

the named persons. Police Inspector R.B.Bansod (PW-17) was

entrusted with the investigation of the case. On the same day, he

called accused No.1-Nalini and Accused No.2- Rinku to the Police

Station for interrogation. As nothing came out of that interrogation,

the said accused persons were allowed to go back. However, on the

same evening, he arrested both Nalini and Rinku and thereafter

accused No.3 – Kishor, accused No.4 – Tarachand in the mid night

of 12th May 2003. It is stated that accused No.2- Rinku and accused

No.3- Kishor, during interrogation confessed that on 8th May 2003

between 1.00 p.m.to 1.30 p.m. they along with accused

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No.4-Tarachand and accused No.6-Satish with the help of accused

No.1-Nalini and accused No.5-Arun had committed murder of

Raman by strangulation in the cattle shed of one Nitin Rai. The

dead body of Raman was thereafter taken away in a gunny bag and

then thrown in a valley near “Deona Darshan Point”. Before

throwing the dead body, they had removed the clothes and wrist

watch from the dead body. They then burnt the gunny bag as well

as the rope used for strangulation including some documents

possessed by the deceased by pouring petrol at some other place at

a distance of 10 km. before Deona Darshan Point. They also agreed

to show the spot where the gunny bag, clothes and documents were

burnt and the place where the dead body was disposed. Pursuant to

the said revelation, the police party along with accused No.2-Rinku

and accused No.3-Kishor proceeded to the locations disclosed by

the said accused. Firstly, they showed the place of burning the

articles from where the remains in the form of ash and a bunch of

keys was seized. Thereafter, they proceeded to the other location

where the dead body was found lying in the valley near Deona

Darshan Point. The Investigating Officer R.B.Bansod completed the

necessary formalities of preparing memorandum of statements of

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the said accused, Panchnamas, seizure panchnamas/memos,

Inquest panchnama etc. of the dead body. The dead body and the

recovered articles were then brought to Narkhed. The dead body

was identified by the complainant Madan Tonpe (PW-1) at the spot

i.e. Deona Darshan Point itself. The dead body was then sent to

Primary Health Centre, Narkhed for post mortem examination. After

the post mortem was conducted on the dead body, it was handed

over to the family members/relatives for funeral. The mother of the

deceased, Smt. Shantabai (PW 15) also identified the dead body of

her son when it was brought to their house. The offence was then

converted and registered under Section 364, 302 and 201 read with

Section 34/120-B of the IPC. Thereafter remaining accused i.e.

accused No.5- Arun, accused No.6-Satish and accused No.7-Suresh

Chandra were arrested.

3. The Investigating Officer R.B.Bansod carried out further

investigation. He recorded statements of the witnesses, seized the

vehicle/Tata Sumo used in the commission of offence for

transporting the dead body, recovered the wrist watch and gold ring

at the instance of accused No.3 - Kishor and accused No.6 - Satish

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respectively. He prepared a panchnama of the place of incident in

the cattle shed of Nitin Rai, seized clothes of accused No.2 -

Rinku, accused No.3-Kishore and accused No.6-Satish and of

deceased Raman. He then verified the bunch of keys recovered from

the spot disclosed by the accused by applying it on the cupboard in

the house of deceased Raman. He also arranged for identification

parade of the wrist watch and gold ring. He seized some currency at

the instance of accused No.6-Satish. The muddemal/property,

seized articles, viscera etc. was then sent to the Chemical Analyser

for analysis. After the investigation was completed, police report

was filed in the Court of J.M.F.C., Narkhed, who committed the

case for trial of the accused before the Sessions Court at Nagpur.

The trial proceeded before the 3rd Addl. Sessions Judge, Nagpur,

who framed charges for offence punishable under Section 364, 302,

201 read with Section 34 in the alternative 120-B of IPC. All the

accused pleaded not guilty and to have been falsely implicated.

They claimed to be tried.

4. The prosecution examined in all 18 witnesses. On considering

the oral and documentary evidence adduced by the prosecution, the

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Trial Court held that the accused persons conspired to kill Raman.

In furtherance of that conspiracy on 8th May 2003, Raman was

abducted by the accused persons and on the same day in the noon

he was killed in the cattle shed of Nitin Rai. Thereafter with a view

to dispose of the dead body of Raman and to destroy the evidence of

murder, they carried the dead body of Raman and threw it in the

valley near Pachmadi (in the State of Madhya Pradesh) at the spot

later on disclosed to the Police by the concerned accused. Similarly,

the articles such as gunny bag used for carrying the dead body and

rope used for strangulation, clothes worn by deceased Raman at the

relevant time as also the documents in his possession were burnt at

a different spot which was disclosed to the Police by the concerned

accused. The Trial Court held that the death of Raman was

homicidal death. Accordingly, the Trial Court convicted the accused

for their involvement in the concerned offence. The operative part of

the Trial Court judgment reads thus:

“1. Accused No. 1 Nalini W/o Vijay Dhapke is hereby convicted vide section 235 (2) Cr.P. Code for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 120-B of I.P.Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000/- (Rupees two thousand only) in default of payment of fine amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for four months.

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2. Accused No.2 Rinku alias Anand S/o Suresh Chandra Roy is hereby convicted vide section 235(2) of Cr.P. Code for the offence punishable under section 302 read with 120-B of I.P.Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000/- (Rupees two thousand only) in default of payment of fine amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for four months.

3. Accused no. 3 Kishor is hereby convicted vide Section 235(2) of Cr.P. Code for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 120-B of LP. Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000/- (Rupees two thousand only) in default of payment of fine amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for four months.

4. Accused No.4 Tarachand is hereby convicted vide Section 235(2) of Cr.P. Code for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 120-B of IP.Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000/- (Rupees two thousand only) in default of payment of fine amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for four months.

5. Accused No. 6 Satish is hereby convicted vide Section 235(2) of Cr.P.Code for the offence punishable under Section 302 read with 120-B of I.P.Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000/- (Rupees two thousand only) in default of payment of fine amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for four months.

6. Accused Nos. 1 to 4 and 6 namely Nalini, Rinku, Kishor, Tarachand and Satish are hereby convicted vide Section 235(2) of Cr.P.Code for the offence punishable under Section 364 read with 120-B of IP.Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three years and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000/- (Rupees two thousand only) each in default of payment of fine

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amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for two months.

7. Accused Nos. 1 to 4 and 6 namely Nalini, Rinku, Kishor, Tarachand and Satish are hereby convicted vide Section 235(2) of Cr.P.Code for the offence punishable under rigorous imprisonment for two years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/- (Rupees one thousand only) each in default of payment of fine amount to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for two months.

8. The above sentence of Accused Nos. 1 to 4 and 6 namely Nalini, Rinku, Kishor, Tarachand and Satish shall run concurrently

9. Accused No. 7 Suresh Chandra Roy is hereby convicted vide Section 235(2) of Cr.P.Code for the offence punishable under Section 201 of I.P.Code to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/- (Rupees one thousand only) in default of payment of fine amount to suffer simple imprisonment for two months.

10. Accused No. 7 Suresh Chandra Roy is directed to surrender his bail bond forthwith.

11. Accused No. 7 Suresh Chandra Roy is acquitted vide Section 235 of Cr.P.Code for the offence punishable under Section 302, 364, read with 120-B of LP. Code.

12. Accused No. 5 Arun Nasre is acquitted under Section 235 of Cr.P.Code for the offence punishable under sections 302, 364, 201 read with 120-B of I.P.Code and his bail bonds shall stand cancelled.

13. The period of undergone period by the accused by set off against the above sentence of imprisonment under Section 428 of Cr.P.Code.

14. The valuable muddemal property namely wrist watch, golden ring and cash amount of Rs. 4,600/- (Rupees four thousand six hundred only) be returned to the complainant Madan S.o Wasudeo Tonpe R/0 Narkhed after the appeal period is over.

15. The remaining muddemal property being worthless be destroyed after the appeal period is over.”

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5. Aggrieved by the aforementioned decision, accused Nos.1 to 4,

6 and 7 filed separate appeals before the High Court being Criminal

Appeal Nos.367, 435, 444 and 452 all of 2005. The High Court

dismissed Appeal Nos.367, 435 and 444 of 2005 filed by the

concerned accused (Nos.2, 6, and 7; 1; and 3 respectively); and

allowed Appeal No.452 of 2005 filed by accused No.4, by a common

judgment dated 15th September 2008. After re-appreciating the

entire evidence adduced by the Prosecution, the High Court in

paragraph 44 of the impugned judgment summed up the

circumstances which led to the finding of guilt against the

concerned accused. The same reads thus:

“44. It was submitted by the learned counsel for the appellants that the motive is not established and everything is in the air. We are, however, satisfied that the prosecution has proved that Raman wanted to purchase the land of A-1 Nalini and her husband Vijay; that he entered into transaction of purchasing the land from them; that two agreements of sale were executed by Nalini and her husband on consideration paid by Raman to them; that on 8.5.2003 A-1 Nalini called Raman to her house by giving him a ring; that accordingly Raman went to her house after withdrawing Rs. 58,000/- from the Bank of Maharashtra, Branch Narkhed; that at that time A-3 Kishore Bhadke, A-4 Tarachand Vaidya and A-6 Satish Bansod were also at the house of A-1 Nalini; that thereafter Raman was not seen alive; that Tata Sumo of Avinash Kalbande was engaged by A-2 Rinku Roy for

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taking goods from the cattle shed of Nitin Rai to Parasiya; that Sanjay Kalkar was the driver of the said vehicle; that gunny bags were loaded in Tata Sumo in the cattle shed of Nitin Roy; that A-3 Kishore Bhadke, A-6 Satish Bansod and A-7 Suresh Roy travelled by the said Sumo from Narkhed to Parasiya; that A-2 Rinku Roy followed Tata Sumo on motorcycle; that in the midnight the gunny bags were unloaded from Tata Sumo at the house of A-7 Suresh Roy; that on the next day morning Sanjay Kalkar brought Tata Sumo to the house of owner thereof; that on 10.5.2003 Sanjay Kalkar again came to take back Tata Sumo and thereafter he never turned up.”

After analyzing the other circumstances and contentions, the High

Court concluded that the finding reached by the Trial Court that

the dead body discovered from the valley near Deona Darshan Point

was that of deceased Raman and that he met with homicidal death,

was unassailable. The High Court also considered the circumstance

of discovery of wrist watch at the instance of accused No.3, gold

ring of Raman and cash of Rs.4800/- (48 notes of 100

denomination) seized from accused No.6; including the blood

stained earth seized from cattle shed of Nitin Rai on 16 th May 2003

under seizure memo (Exh.92) which as per the report of Chemical

Analyser (Exh.151) showed human blood. Human blood was also

found on the pant of Accused No.2 Rinku, which circumstance

remained unexplained. Similarly, full pant and shirt of accused

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No.3 Kishor which were seized on 15th May 2003 from his house

and on analysis by the Chemical Analyser it showed human blood,

which also remained unexplained. After taking over all view of the

matter, the High Court concluded that the complete chain of

circumstances unequivocally point out towards the guilt of accused

No.1- Nalini, accused No.2 -Rinku, accused No.3- Kishore Bhadke,

and accused No.6- Satish Bansod, excluding any hypothesis

consistent with their innocence. Accordingly, they were convicted

for offence punishable under Section 364/120-B, 302/120-B and

201/120-B of the IPC. The finding of guilt reached against these

accused by the Trial Court was once again reiterated by the High

Court.

6. As regards accused No.4-Tarachand, in paragraph 74 of the

impugned judgment, the High Court observed thus:

“74. On close scrutiny of the evidence we find that though there is evidence to show that A-4 Tarachand Vaidya was at the house of A-1 Nalini on 8.5.2003 when Raman came to her house and he was also seen loading gunny bags in Tata Sumo, he did not travel by Tata Sumo from Narkhed to Parasiya thereafter. From the evidence it seems that the role of A-4 Tarachand Vaidya is only to the extent of loading gunny bags in Tata Sumo from the cattle shed of Nitin Roy. There is no evidence to show that he was aware of the murder of

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Raman. Immediately after loading gunny bags in Tata Sumo, he left the place and did not travel by Tata Sumo from Narkhed onwards. From these circumstances A-4 Tarachand Vaidya is entitled to get benefit of doubt. Accordingly we extend benefit of doubt to him and acquit him.”

7. While dealing with the case of accused No.7- Suresh, the High

Court in paragraph 75 of the impugned judgment observed thus:

“75. The role of A-7 Suresh Roy is only to the extent of helping the other accused persons in removing the dead body of Raman from Narkhed to Parasiya and thereafter causing disappearance of the dead body and other evidence of the offence. As such his conviction for the offence punishable under Section 201/120-B of IPC needs to be maintained.”

8. The High Court finally disposed of the appeals in the following

terms:

“(i) Appeal Nos. 367 of 2005, 435 of 2005 and 444 of 2005 are dismissed. Bail bonds of original accused No.7/Sureshchandra Jagannath Rai stand cancelled. He is directed to surrender within four weeks to serve out the sentence.

(ii) Appeal No. 452 of 2005 is allowed. The conviction of Tarachand s/o Shalikram Vaidya for the offence punishable under Sections 364, 302 and 201 r/w 120-B of IPC is set aside and he is acquitted of the said charges. He be released forthwith if not required in any other offence.”

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9. Aggrieved by the aforementioned decision, accused Nos.1, 3

and 6 have assailed the same by way of separate appeals before this

Court. The argument was led by Advocate R.R.Deshpande for

accused No.3. He submitted that the prosecution case hinges on

circumstantial evidence. If the chain of circumstances is not

complete pointing towards the guilt of the accused, it would be

unsafe to uphold the finding of guilt though concurrent by two

courts below. He submits that the High Court has not analyzed the

circumstance about the nature of death of Raman as to whether it

was suicidal or homicidal death. He submits that circumstance held

against accused No.3 of recovery of blood stained clothes at his

instance is questionable. In that, the prosecution has failed to

establish the blood group much less that the blood stains pertained

to the blood group of deceased Raman. He submits that the

evidence regarding factum of motive produced by the prosecution is

very weak. In any case, motive is attributed to Nalini (A1) with

which accused No.3 has no concern. Therefore, that circumstance

cannot be used against him. He has also taken us through the

evidence of prosecution witnesses who have spoken about the

presence of accused at the scene of offence, relied by the

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prosecution to substantiate the circumstance of last seen together.

He submitted that the evidence of PW-11 and PW-12 is not reliable.

Their statements were recorded after a long gap and the reason for

such delay has not been explained. Further, the prosecution

witness (PW 12) examined in support of this circumstance is a

chance witness. He was residing in another village. The prosecution

theory about homicidal death is doubtful. Even the evidence

regarding the manner in which the body of deceased Raman was

thrown is doubtful. For, no lacerated injury was found by the

Doctor while conducting post mortem. Only four injuries have been

noted which belies the prosecution theory that the body was thrown

in the valley from the height of around 600 ft. He submits that the

factual position mentioned in the memorandum of disclosure

recorded under Section 27 of the Evidence Act, relied by the

prosecution qua accused No.3, is inadmissible and cannot be taken

into account. In absence thereof, there is no legal evidence about

discovery of dead body of deceased or articles belonging to the

deceased ascribable to accused No.3. Thus, that circumstance

cannot be used against him. He submits that the said evidence is

inadmissible also because no signature of accused is taken on the

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recovery panchnama. He then submits that the statement of

accused No.3 recorded under Section 313, Cr.P.C., the whole of it is

vitiated because it is a joint statement of all the accused recorded

by the Trial Court. In support of this contention, he invited our

attention to the said statement recorded under Section 313, Cr.P.C.

Lastly, he submits that benefit be given to accused No.3 on the

same reasoning as given to accused No.7. Learned counsel has

placed reliance on the decisions of this Court in the cases of

Jackaran Singh vs. State of Punjab1; A.R. Khima vs. State of

Saurashtra2; and Sunil Clifford Daniel vs. State of Punjab3.

10. The accused No.1 is represented by Advocate Mr. Gagan

Sanghi. His argument essentially revolved around the two

circumstances held against accused No.1. Firstly, of motive and

secondly last seen together. He submits that no recovery has been

made at the instance of accused No.1 nor it is the case of

prosecution that accused No.1 was seen along with other accused

1

AIR 1995 SC 2345 –Para 8 2

AIR 1956 SC 217 3

(2012) 11 SCC 205 Para 37 to 40

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travelling in Tata Sumo vehicle wherein the dead body of deceased

Raman was carried away. As regards motive, he submits that the

prosecution theory about the illicit relations between accused No.1

Nalini and accused No.2 Rinku has been discarded by both the

courts below. The Trial Court as well as the High Court has,

however, accepted the prosecution case that there was some

transaction about land between accused No.1 Nalini and deceased

Raman over which the matter got escalated causing death of

Raman. The evidence in this behalf produced by the prosecution,

however, is very weak. PW-1 in his cross-examination says that he

had disclosed about the said fact to PW-17 (I.O.) i.e. about the

agreement executed between the parties. But PW-1 was not aware

as to why that fact is not mentioned in his statement recorded by

the police. Further, PW-17(I.O.) in the cross-examination has

denied of any such statement given by PW-1. PW-17 (I.O.) admitted

in his cross-examination that he had not investigated the matter

with regard to the land transaction. Moreover, PW-1 in his

cross-examination admits that he does not know who and in whose

name the stamp papers were purchased and how payments were

made. The other witness, who has spoken about the land

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transaction is PW-15, mother of deceased Raman. She has spoken

about the phone call received on 8th May 2003 from Nalini. She

wanted to talk to Raman. Raman attended the phone call and

thereafter disclosed to PW15 that Nalini (accused No.1) had called

him to her house and he will go along with documents in respect of

agricultural land to get her signature. She has stated that deceased

Raman left the house at about 11.30 a.m. According to the learned

counsel, evidence of PW-15 cannot be taken into account as neither

the documents regarding transaction have been produced by the

prosecution nor the documentary evidence regarding the fact that

phone call was received by PW-15 has been produced. As regards

the factum of last seen together, it is submitted that the evidence of

PW-11 is unreliable and is replete with material omissions and

contradictions. Similarly, the evidence of PW-12 is also unreliable.

As a result, the prosecution has failed to substantiate the crucial

circumstance of last seen together with accused No.1. This being a

crucial link and as no satisfactory evidence is forthcoming to

indicate the complicity of accused No.1, the finding of guilt qua

accused No.1 would be unsafe. Further, being a case of

circumstantial evidence, the Court must analyze the evidence with

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utmost circumspection and even if one crucial link is missing,

benefit must go to the accused. He has placed reliance on Nizam

and another vs. State of Rajasthan4. On the issue of motive he

has placed reliance on Saju vs. State of Kerala5 to contend that

motive by itself cannot be a proof of conspiracy. Reliance is also

placed on Keshav vs. State of Maharashtra6 to contend that

conviction cannot be based solely on the basis of motive; and the

circumstance of last seen together becomes relevant only when the

death is proved to have taken place within a short time of the

accused being last seen. Reliance is then placed on Arjun Marik

and others vs. State of Bihar7 to buttress the argument that the

factum of motive assumes importance in a case of circumstantial

evidence, if it is established from the evidence on record that the

accused had a strong motive and also an opportunity to commit the

crime; and that the established circumstances along with the

4

(2016) 1 SCC 550 – Para 8,9,18-20 5

(2001) 1 SCC 378 6

(2007) 13 SCC 284 7

1994 Suppl.(2) SCC 372

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explanation of the accused, if any, exclude the reasonable

possibility of anyone else being the perpetrator of the crime then the

chain of evidence may be considered to show that within all human

probability the crime must have been committed by the accused.

Thus, the only circumstance of last seen together will not be

enough to complete the chain of circumstances to record a finding

of guilt against accused No.1. He has also placed reliance on the

other decisions, more or less dealing with similar aspect, in the case

of Mohibur Rahman & Anr. vs. State of Assam8; Niranjan

Panja vs. State of W.B.9; Sk.Yusuf vs. State of W.B.10; Shyamal

Ghosh vs. State of W.B.11; Kanhaiya Lal vs. State of

Rajasthan12; Malleshappa vs. State of Karnataka13; Ashok vs.

8

(2002) 6 SCC 715 9

(2010) 6 SCC 525 10

(2011) 11 SCC 754 11

(2012)7 SCC 646 12

(2014) 4 SCC 715 13

(2007) 13 SCC 399

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State of Maharashtra14; Nizam vs. State of Rajasthan15;

Mousam Singha Roy & Ors. vs. State of W.B.16 and Sangili vs.

State of Tamil Nadu17 Reliance is also placed on the decision in

the case of Lohit Kaushal vs. State of Haryana18 about the

efficacy of statement of a co-accused under Section 27 of the

Evidence Act.

11. Ms. Anagha S.Desai, Advocate appeared for accused No.6. She

contends that that the dead body was recovered at the instance of

accused Nos.2 and 3. The recovery of gold ring at the instance of

accused No.6 is doubtful. The prosecution has not established the

special identity of gold ring and it has come on record that such

gold rings are freely available in the open market. Further, no blood

stains or any incriminatory evidence was noticed on the gold ring.

The accused No.6 was arrested on 13th May 2003 on which day his

14

(2015) 4 SCC 393 15

(2016) 1 SCC 550 16

(2003) 12 SCC 377 17

(2014) 10 SCC 264 18

(2009) 17 SCC 106 – Para 18, 21

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statement was also recorded. The recovery of gold ring, however, is

on 18th May 2003, while the accused No.6 was in police custody.

Similarly, the cash amount recovered at the instance of accused

No.6 was of no avail to the prosecution. It was a paltry amount as

compared to the amount withdrawn by Raman on 8th May 2003

from the Bank. Further, there is no evidence that the currency

recovered from accused No.6 was the same as withdrawn by the

deceased Raman from the Bank. No blood stains were found on the

clothes recovered at the instance of accused No.6. In the confession

statement of accused No.2, there is no mention of gold ring. The

signature of accused No.6 was obtained on a blank paper and it

was then used as a memorandum under Section 27 of the Evidence

Act. Recovery of clothes as well as gold ring attributed to the

accused No.6 was doubtful. Reliance is placed by the counsel on

Gulab Singh vs. State of U.P.19 to contend that recovery of ring of

deceased from the accused No.6 after such long gap and even if

accused No.6 failed to offer valid explanation for possession of the

gold ring, is at best liable to be convicted under Section 411 of IPC

19

1995 Supp. (4) SCC 502

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and not for the offence of murder. She submits that the accused

No.6 should be given the same benefit as given to accused No.7, if

not an acquittal as in the case of accused Nos.4 and 5.

12. Per contra, Mr. N.R. Katneshwarkar, Advocate appearing for

the State supported the findings and conclusions reached by the

two courts below. He submits that the argument of the appellants is

essentially on the basis of some minor discrepancies in the evidence

and not because of material omissions amounting to contradictions

or contradictory evidence of the prosecution. Two courts below have

had the opportunity to analyze the evidence threadbare; and the

view taken by the High Court being a possible view, does not merit

any interference. He submits that there is clinching evidence to

indicate the complicity of accused Nos.1, 3 and 6, who are the

appellants before this Court. No fault can be found with the courts

below for having convicted them for the stated offence. He took us

through the evidence of the concerned witnesses and pointed out

the findings of the two courts below which have analyzed the said

evidence exhaustively and analytically. Regarding the factum of

land transaction, the evidence of PW1 was unassailable. He submits

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that the prosecution has successfully substantiated the

circumstance of motive of accused No.1. The fact that no discovery

is made at the instance of accused No.1 would be of no avail to the

said accused. She was the master mind of the conspiracy to murder

Raman. There was dispute between accused No.1 and deceased

Raman in respect of land transaction and non-payment of the

agreement amount. The prosecution evidence has established that

Nalini had made a telephone call to deceased Raman on 8th May

2003. PW-15 has also spoken about the fact disclosed to her by

Raman before leaving the house at around 11.30 a.m. The

prosecution was also able to substantiate the fact that Raman after

leaving the house in the presence of PW-15, proceeded towards the

Bank and withdrew an amount of Rs.58,000/-. He went to the

house of Nalini where he was last seen. The dead body of Raman

was put in a gunny bag and transported by Tata Sumo vehicle. It

was then disposed at a spot disclosed by the accused Nos.2 and 3.

He submits that prosecution has succeeded in establishing motive

and last seen together which is good enough to affirm the finding of

guilt against accused No.1 Nalini. As regards accused No.6, he

submits that the recovery of ring which belonged to deceased

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Raman has been established by the prosecution. Besides that,

accused No.6 was not only last seen together with the deceased in

the house of Nalini but also while taking away the dead body of

deceased Raman in Tata Sumo vehicle. His involvement cannot be

equated with the role of accused Nos. 4, 5 and 7, which has been

found to be materially different by the Courts below. While refuting

the argument of accused No.3, he submits that the prosecution has

been able to establish that the death was homicidal death and was

caused due to strangulation by a rope. The prosecution has also

established the presence of accused No.3 at the relevant time. He

was not only last seen together in the house of Nalini accused No.1

at the relevant time but also in the Tata Sumo vehicle in which the

dead body of Raman was transported. Moreover, the location where

the dead body and articles of Raman were disposed has been

disclosed even by accused No.3. Reliance is placed on the decision

of this Court in the case of Sunil Clifford Daniel (supra) to

contend that absence of signature of the accused on the

memorandum of recovery would make no difference. The statement

of the accused No.3 recorded under Section 27 of the Evidence has

been signed by the accused. A separate statement of accused No.3

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was recorded before the police proceeded to the location which was

jointly disclosed by accused Nos. 2 and 3. Learned counsel submits

that all the appeals deserve to be dismissed and the finding of guilt

and sentence awarded to the concerned accused be affirmed.

13. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties at length.

We were ably assisted by the learned counsel for the respective

parties who took us through the relevant depositions and

documents and the analysis done by the Trial Court and the High

Court in that behalf. We must appreciate the exhaustive judgment

delivered by the Trial Court, meticulously dealing with every aspect

of the evidence on record. We find that the High Court has also

analyzed the relevant piece of evidence on its own besides adverting

to the findings rendered by the Trial Court in that regard. In other

words, we have to deal with concurrent findings of fact on most of

the relevant aspects concerning the matters in issue. Our analysis,

therefore, must focus on the legal aspects emanating from the

concurrent findings so recorded and not to re-appreciate the entire

evidence.

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14. In this backdrop, we may first advert to the main question as

to whether the circumstance of motive and last seen together, as

answered by the two courts below, is just and proper. As regards

the circumstance of motive, prosecution has mainly relied on the

evidence of PW-1 and PW-15. The criticism is that no documentary

evidence to buttress the factum of land transaction between

deceased Raman and Nalini (accused No.1) and about the telephone

call made by Nalini to Raman in the morning on 8th May 2003, as

stated by the said witnesses have been brought on record or any

attempt made by the Investigating Officer to recover the same. The

courts below have found that absence of documentary evidence in

the form of agreement of land transaction or a civil suit between the

parties, that cannot be the basis to outright discard the statements

given by the witnesses to the Investigating Officer and more

particularly the evidence before the court. They have spoken about

the dispute regarding taking of possession of the land. Further, the

accused No.1 in her statement under Section 313, Cr.P.C. has

stated that the members of Tonpe family wanted her land and they

cheated her and that Raman Tonpe and his brother Madan Tonpe

(PW-1) caused heavy loss to her agricultural land and also defamed

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her. The courts below, therefore, held that absence of documents

regarding such transaction was not fatal. The evidence on record

was enough to accept the theory of demand for compliance of the

transaction from the side of Tonpe family, as the cause of motive.

The courts have also noted from the evidence that there was some

dispute in respect of hotel premises for which Vijay Dhpake

(husband of accused No.1-Nalini), had lodged a report against

accused No.2. That dispute was settled by deceased Raman. The

Courts below have found that the prosecution proved the following

circumstances. That deceased Raman was the Director of Rashtra

Mata Indira Gandhi Kanya Vidyalaya,Narkhed. The land of accused

No.1 Nalini and her husband Vijay Dhpake was adjacent to the said

school. Since Raman was looking after the family affairs of Tonpe,

he had entered into an agreement with accused No.1 Nalini and her

husband Vijay for purchase of their land. Accused No.1 and her

husband executed an agreement in favour of Madan and her elder

brother Pramod by accepting Rs.25,000/-. Another agreement of

sale was executed in favour of Pramod by accepting Rs.1,33,000/-.

The possession of the land was also delivered to Tonpe family.

Besides the said amount, deceased Raman had paid Rs.50,000/-

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and Rs.30,000/- to Nalini towards the transaction for which

receipts were executed on separate stamp paper. This had

happened one year before the incident in question. The High Court

in paragraph 26 has dealt with the argument under consideration

and observed thus:

“26. It is true that neither the alleged agreements of sale no receipts for payment made after the agreements have been produced by the prosecution. However, we cannot overlook the evidence to the effect that when on the date of incident deceased Raman had left his house, he had carried the documents about those transactions with him. Neither those documents nor the cash amount which was carried by deceased Raman was recovered perhaps because all the belongings of deceased Taman were burnt before his dead body was thrown in the valley. As agreements of sale might not have been registered and as such no certified copies thereof could be obtained by the prosecution in order to support its case. Even otherwise this is not a civil proceeding in which transactions of sale are to be proved by production of documents. We can rely on oral testimony of PW1 Madan for this purpose. Hence we find that the sale transactions between A-1 Nalini and Raman have been proved by the prosecution.”

Also in para 31 the High Court observed thus:

“31. It was urged by the learned counsel for the appellants that the investigating officer has not verified the record from the Telephone Exchange about the call received at the residence of deceased Raman on 8.5.2003. In the absence of corroboration by the record of Telephone Exchange, the testimony of PW Shantabai should not be accepted. We are unable to agree with this submission. We see no reason to disbelieve the testimony of PW Shantabai. This would show that the

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documents about transaction of purchase of land were taken by deceased Raman with him and as those documents must have been burnt. So there is no question of production of those documents in order to prove the transaction between A-1 Nalini and deceased Raman.”

15. The question is whether the approach of the High Court

regarding the argument under consideration is correct. We may

hasten to add that Criminal Court trying the offence of murder was

not required to decide about the issue of title of the land or to

consider the relief of specific performance. The evidence given by

PW-1 and corroborated by PW-15, revealed that there was

transaction in respect of land between the accused No.1 and

Tonpe’s. That version could not be demolished in the

cross-examination. Another piece of evidence relied by the

prosecution is about the destruction of clothes and articles of

deceased Raman. The Police could only recover ash from the spot

along with bunch of keys. That lends support to the prosecution

case that the possibility of documents having been destroyed also

cannot be ruled out. Hence, it was open to the Trial Court as well

as the High Court to rely on the evidence of witnesses for the

limited purpose. The fact that deceased Raman while leaving his

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house had carried some papers/documents with him has been

stated by PW-15, when he went to meet accused No.1 Nalini. The

counsel for the appellants and in particular accused No.1 had

drawn our attention to cross-examination of PW-15. He has also

drawn our attention to cross-examination of PW-1 to contend that

the factum of land transaction between Tonpe and Nalini was not

disclosed in the statement recorded by the Police under Section 161

of the Code. On close examination of the said cross-examination, we

found that the question posed to the witness was limited to the

initial statement and not to the supplementary statement recorded

by the Investigating Officer. A supplementary statement of the

witnesses was given to the Investigating Officer, which mentioned

the fact of land transaction, as was deposed by the witness in the

examination-in-chief. In other words, it was half hearted

cross-examination by the accused. No question was posed in

respect of the contents of the supplementary statement which was

also part of the charge-sheet and crucial to the relevant fact. The

answer given by Investigating Officer PW-17 therefore will have to

be understood in the same context. Confronted with this situation,

the argument of the appellants is that no documentary evidence

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regarding the transaction is forthcoming. For the reasons already

mentioned, there is no tangible reason to discard the relevant fact

established by the prosecution witnesses in support of the

circumstance of motive.

16. The prosecution has also established the vital circumstance of

last seen together. That evidence is given by PW-11 and PW-12 in

particular. Their evidence will have to be juxtaposed with the

evidence of PW-15, who has spoken about the telephone call

received from Nalini and pursuant to which Raman left his house in

her presence with relevant documents/papers. The courts below

have accepted her version as truthful and reliable. That evidence

cannot be discarded on the basis of some minor discrepancies

pointed out during the course of argument. The finding recorded by

the two courts below with regard to PW-15 about the truthfulness of

her version is unexceptional. The evidence of PW-11 corroborates

the fact that deceased Raman had gone to the Bank for withdrawing

cash amount and then proceeded to the house of Nalini accused

No.1. He has deposed that Raman went inside the house of Nalini

and saw accused Nos.2, 3, 4 and 6 standing near the cattle shed of

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Nitin Rai. While returning back he saw accused No.5 standing near

the water tank.

17. The fact of deceased Raman had gone to the Bank for

withdrawing the amount has been corroborated by PW-8 who was

Cashier in the Bank at the relevant time. Even the evidence of PW-8

has been found to be truthful and reliable. In other words, there is

credible evidence on record that Raman started from his house in

the presence of PW-15 as stated by her. He then proceeded to the

Bank for withdrawing amount of Rs.58,000/-, which obviously was

to be paid to accused No.1 Nalini. From the Bank he straight

proceeded to the house of Nalini. That fact stated by PW-11 stands

corroborated from the evidence of PW-12, who has deposed that he

had gone to Nalini’s house to finalise the deal concerning her

agricultural land for cultivation on yearly rent basis. He met her in

her house at about 11.30 a.m. to 12.00 noon and found that

Raman was sitting in the verandah of the house with her. He had

also seen accused Nos.2, 3, and 6 in the same room. The counsel

for the appellants no doubt made an attempt to discredit this

witness on the basis of some discrepancies in his evidence such as

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the place where his statement was recorded by the Police - whether

in his house or in the Police Station and that he knew Raman for

the last 10 years and was therefore an interested witness. Further,

the fact stated by him that Raman was sitting in Varandah and

talking to Nalini and when he saw other accused were present has

not been disclosed to the Investigating Officer and unable to assign

any reason as to why he had not disclosed that fact. The evidence of

this witness has been analyzed by the Trial Court as well as by the

High Court. This witness has been found to be independent and

truthful. He has deposed about the relevant facts which have been

corroborated by the version of PW-11 about the concerned accused

persons last seen together. No other witnesses has come forward to

depose that after the meeting of deceased Raman with Nalini,

Raman was seen elsewhere at a later point of time. Thus, there is

sufficient evidence about the factum of last seen together. This

circumstance is further strengthened by the evidence given by other

prosecution witnesses (PW 9, 6 and 12), who had seen the

concerned accused persons loading a gunny bag in Sumo vehicle

after some time; and that accused Nos. 3 and 6 were also seen in

the vehicle carrying that gunny bag. The gunny bag, as found by

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the two courts below was used to carry the dead body of deceased

Raman which was transported in a vehicle and then thrown at an

isolated location in the valley. There is no tangible reason to doubt

the correctness of the concurrent finding recorded by the two courts

below in this behalf. The Courts below have undertaken detailed

analysis of the evidence of the concerned prosecution witnesses.

Thus, the prosecution has succeeded in establishing the

circumstance of motive and last seen together indicating the

involvement of the appellants - accused Nos.1, 3 and 6 in

particular.

18. It was then argued that the High Court has failed to analyse

the fact as to whether death of Raman was suicidal or homicidal.

From the judgment of the Trial Court, we find that every aspect on

this issue has been considered threadbare from para 16 to para 25,

to conclude that the death of deceased Raman was homicidal death.

The Trial Court has examined the evidence of Dr.R.N.Gakare

(PW-16), letter of requisition (Exh.127) and the post mortem report

(Exh.129). The Doctor has explained the circumstances in which he

could notice the injuries on the dead body. He has categorically

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deposed that although the dead body was decomposed because of

passage of time but identity of the person could be discerned. The

Doctor himself identified deceased Raman as he was known to him.

The other prosecution witnesses PW-1 and PW-15 have also

identified the dead body of Raman. The Doctor has also explained

the fracture injury noticed on the dead body, which, in his opinion,

was due to strangulation and asphyxia. Thus, we find no merit in

the contention that the nature of injury noted in the post mortem

report would rule out the possibility of homicidal death. The dead

body has been discovered at the instance of accused Nos.2 and 3

from the spot in a valley about 600 ft. deep. The Police reached that

spot on the basis of the disclosure made by the said accused Nos. 2

and 3 under Section 27 of the Evidence Act. The Police party along

with other witnesses had proceeded to the spot disclosed by

accused Nos.2 and 3 and recovered the dead body of Raman from

the valley.

19. It was contended by the counsel for the accused No.3 that the

evidence regarding discovery of the dead body of Raman cannot be

used against accused No.3. Inasmuch as, when accused No.3 gave

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his statement and recorded in the form of Memorandum under

Section 27 of the Evidence Act, the Police already knew about the

spot where the dead body was thrown as it was disclosed by

accused No.2. It was contended that the statement made by

accused No.2 can be used only against accused No.2. This

argument has been negatived by the Trial Court after analyzing the

decisions which were brought to its notice, as can be discerned

from para 46 to para 53 of the judgment. The Trial Court found that

in the present case the accused Nos.2 and 3 made disclosure (about

the spot where dead body of Raman was thrown by them) one after

another in quick succession and that their statement came to be

recorded separately. The only thing that had happened was a joint

discovery made at the instance of both the accused Nos.2 and 3, on

proceeding to the spot along with the police. Section 27 of the

Evidence Act is an exception to Section 25 of the Act. Section 25

mandates that no confession to a Police Officer while in police

custody shall be proved as against a person accused of any offence.

Section 27, however, provides that any fact deposed to and

discovered in consequence of information received from a person

accused of any offence, in the custody of a Police Officer, so much

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of such information, whether it amounts to a confession or not, as

relates distinctly to the fact thereby discovered, may be proved. The

fact where the dead body of deceased Raman was disposed, was

disclosed by both the accused Nos.2 and 3 to the Investigating

Officer in the presence of SK Idris (PW 2) one after another on 12 th

May 2003 at 3.05 hrs and 3.25 hrs. respectively. The discovery was

made only after accused Nos.2 and 3 were taken together by the

police to the spot in the neighbouring State (Madhya Pradesh),

where the recovery Panchnama was recorded bearing Exh.76A. In

other words, the disclosure of the relevant fact by accused No.3 to

the Investigating Officer preceeded the discovery of dead body from

the disclosed spot at the instance of both the accused Nos. 2 and 3.

It was not a case of recording of statement of accused No.3 after

discovery nor a joint statement of accused Nos.2 and 3, but

disclosure made by them separately in quick succession to the

Investigating Officer, preceding the discovery of the fact so stated.

The fact disclosed by them, therefore, and the discovery made at

their instance, was admissible against both the accused in terms of

Section 27 of the Evidence Act.

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20. In the case of State (NCT of Delhi) Vs. Navjot Sandhu,20 this

Court has held that a joint disclosure or simultaneous disclosures,

per se, are not inadmissible under Section 27. A person accused

need not necessarily be a single person, but it could be a plurality

of the accused. The Court held that a joint or simultaneous

disclosure is a myth, because two or more accused persons would

not have uttered informatory words in chorus. When two persons

in custody are interrogated separately and simultaneously and

both of them may furnish similar information leading to the

discovery of fact which was reduced into writing, such disclosure

by two or more persons in police custody do not go out of the

purview of Section 27 altogether. What is relevant is that

information given by one after the other without any break, almost

simultaneously, as in the present case and such information is

followed up by pointing out the material things by both of them

then there is no good reason to eschew such evidence from the

regime of Section 27. Whether that information is credible is a

matter of evaluation of evidence. The Courts below have accepted

20

2005 (11) SCC 600 (para 45)

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the prosecution version in this behalf, being credible. Suffice it to

say that the disclosure made by Accused No. 3 about the relevant

fact, per se, is not inadmissible.

21. Reliance was placed on A.R. Khima (supra) to contend that

incriminating articles alleged to have been recovered at this

instance of the accused is inadmissible in evidence, if the police

already knew where they were hidden. The dictum in the said

decision is in the context of the fact situation of that case. The

Court found that the police already knew where the articles were

hidden. Further, the information was not derived from the accused

but from someone else, one of the other suspects. In that case, the

Sub-Inspector to whom the disclosure was made was not examined

by the prosecution. The Court also found that articles were not

hidden but kept in the manner which might be normally kept in

any average household. In the present case, as found by the

Courts below, the disclosure was made by the Accused Nos. 2 and

3 in quick succession. The police party along with witnesses and

both the accused thereafter proceeded to the isolated spot (in a

valley) disclosed by the said accused from where the dead body of

Raman was discovered. The concerned Police Officer as well as the

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witnesses to the Memorandum of Statement recorded under

Section 27 have been examined by the prosecution and found to be

reliable and trustworthy. This reported decision, therefore, does not

take the matter any further.

22. It was then argued that the recovery Panchnama (Exh.76A) did

not contain signature of the accused and for which reason the same

was inadmissible. Even this submission does not commend to us.

In that, no provision has been brought to our notice which

mandates taking signature of the accused on the recovery

Panchnama. Admittedly, signature of accused was taken on the

statement recorded under Section 27 of the Evidence Act (Exh.76

and 77 respectively). The statement of accused No.3 (Exh.77) bears

his signature. Therefore, even this argument does not take the

matter any further.

23. In the case of the Jackaran Singh (supra), the Court opined

that the disclosure statement given by the accused regarding

conscious possession of the weapon did not inspire confidence.

One of the reason was that disclosure statement did not bear the

signature or the thumb impression of the appellant. The Court

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found that even, the recovery memo of the revolver and the

cartridges did not bear either the signatures or the thumb

impression of the accused. In the present case, the disclosure

statement bears the signature of accused Nos. 2 and 3 respectively.

The absence of signatures on the recovery memo (Exhibit 76-A)

would not make it inadmissible and it has been rightly taken into

account because of the other evidence regarding its authenticity

and genuineness. In the recent decision in the case of Sunil

Clifford Daniel (supra), in paras 37 to 40, the issue stands

answered against the appellants. Reliance was placed on the dictum

in paras 18 and 21 in the case of Lohit Kaushal (supra). In that

case, the Court found that the statement of accused who was

discharged by the Trial Court was hit by Section 25 and 26 of the

Evidence Act. The same was inadmissible in evidence. The Court,

however, observed that statement made to the Police can only be

used for the limited purpose provided under Section 27 of the

Evidence Act and that too only against the person making the

statement. In that case, the statement made by the concerned

accused who was discharged did not lead to the recovery of any

item whatsoever. In the present case, however, the statement of

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accused No.2 and 3 has been recorded separately and both the

accused accompanied the Police and disclosed the spot where the

dead body of Raman was thrown. On the basis of that disclosure,

the dead body of Raman and the remains of the burnt articles of

Raman were recovered for which that fact becomes relevant fact and

can be used against the appellants (accused Nos.2 and 3). In other

words, this decision will be of no assistance to the said appellants.

24. It was then contended that the circumstance of blood stained

clothes recovered at the instance of accused No.3 was questionable

because no evidence regarding the blood group or the fact that the

blood stains belonged to the blood group of deceased Raman is

forthcoming. Further, the recovery itself was doubtful. Even this

aspect has been considered by both the courts below and negatived.

The absence of evidence regarding blood group cannot be fatal to

the prosecution. The finding recorded by the courts below about the

presence of human blood on the clothes recovered at the instance of

accused No.3 has not been questioned. The Courts have also found

that no explanation was offered by the accused No.3 in respect of

presence of human blood on his clothes. Accordingly, we affirm the

concurrent finding recorded by the courts below in that behalf

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including about the legality of such recovery at the instance of

accused No.3.

25. It was then argued by the counsel for accused No.3 that even

if circumstance of motive is proved, that can be relevant only

against accused No.1. That cannot be used against accused No.3.

This argument completely overlooks the charge for which accused

No.3 was tried, which included charge of conspiracy under Section

120-B of IPC. As aforesaid, the presence of accused No.3 at the

relevant time in the house of Nalini and also seen while loading the

gunny bag in Sumo vehicle and also travelling in that vehicle, leaves

no manner of doubt about his complicity in the commission of

offence.

26. In the case of Saju (supra), on facts of that case it was held

that the circumstances of last seen together and motive were not

conclusive to indicate hatching of criminal conspiracy. The Court

held that there was no evidence regarding the circumstance

attributing the pregnancy of the deceased to the appellant and his

insistence for abortion of the child. On that finding, the

circumstance of motive was answered against the prosecution and

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in favour of the appellant. In that context the Court observed that

even otherwise motive by itself cannot be proof of conspiracy. It is

well established that, ordinarily, direct evidence regarding

conspiracy may not be forthcoming. Hence, in most of the cases,

the Courts have to infer conspiracy on the basis of established

facts. In the present case, on analyzing the facts and the events

that unfold, the Courts below have answered the factum of

conspiracy against the appellants-accused Nos. 1, 3 and 6.

Further, the prosecution did not rest only on the factum of last seen

together but also on other circumstances to point out the

involvement of the appellants in the commission of crime. In the

Case of Arjun Mariks (supra), which deals with similar contention,

the Court restated the settled legal position that interference by the

Supreme Court with concurrent finding of fact is justified only when

it is possible to take the view that the findings are manifestly

erroneous, unreasonable, unjustified or illegal or violative of some

Fundamental Rules of Procedure or natural Justice. In the present

case, concurrent finding recorded by two Courts below after

exhaustive analysis of the evidence, is that the same

unambiguously points out towards the involvement of the

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appellants in the commission of crime. In the reported decision,

this Court has also observed that mere absence of proof of motive

for commission of a crime cannot be a ground to presume the

innocence of an accused if the involvement of the accused is

otherwise established. But in the case of circumstantial evidence

motive, does assume some relevance. If it is evident from the

evidence on record that the accused had an opportunity to commit

the crime and the established circumstances along with explanation

of the accused, if any, exclude the reasonable possibility of anyone

else being the perpetrator of the crime then the chain of evidence

may be considered to show that within all human probability the

crime must have been committed by the accused. On the facts of

the present case, we find no tangible reason to disturb the

concurrent findings recorded by the two Courts below.

27. The case of Nizam (supra) was also based on circumstantial

evidence. In that case, the courts below placed emphasis on the

last seen theory. After analyzing the evidence on facts of that case,

this Court held that none of the circumstances relied upon by the

prosecution and accepted by courts below can be said be pointing

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only towards the guilt of appellants and to no other inference. In

that case, more than one inferences could be drawn on the basis of

evidence brought before the Court for which benefit of doubt was

given to the appellants. The Court noted several other lapses in

the investigation and missing links. And therefore, observed that

last seen together though an important link in the chain of

circumstances yet the court is required to take into account the

entire evidence in its entirety and ensure that only inference that

could be drawn from evidence, is guilt of the accused. In the

present case, however, two courts below have justly analysed the

entire evidence and considered all the circumstances and not

limited to the circumstance of last seen together. The concurrent

finding recorded by the courts below is that the only inference that

can be drawn is pointing towards the guilt of the concerned accused

in particular accused Nos. 1,3 and 6.

28. Similarly, in the case of Kanhaiya Lal (supra), the Court

observed that last seen together circumstance does not by itself

necessarily lead to inference that it was accused who committed

crime but there must be something more to connect the accused

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with the crime and to point out the guilt of the accused and none

else. As aforesaid, in the present case there is clinching evidence to

point towards the involvement of the appellants in the commission

of the crime. We find no tangible reason to deviate from the

concurrent findings of the courts below in that behalf.

29. Reliance placed on the dictum in the case of Sangili (supra) in

our view is inapposite. In that case, the court found that the

evidence of last seen together was not established and the factum of

motive was based on hearsay evidence. Further, except the alleged

recovery there was no other circumstance worth the name which

could be proved against the appellants. That is not the position in

the present case. For, the courts below have analytically

considered the prosecution evidence in its entirety to answer both

the counts against the appellants. The concurrent finding recorded

by the courts below in that behalf does not merit interference.

Reliance was placed on the decision in Gulab Singh (supra). In

that case, however, the Court found as of fact that the prosecution

had failed to establish the guilt of the accused as evidence against

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him on the factum of last seen together was deficient. In the present

case, however, the fact situation is different.

30. In the case of Shyamal Ghosh (supra), on the basis of the

evidence before the Court in that case, in para 74, the court

observed that reasonableness of the time gap is of some

significance. If the time gap is very large, then it is not only difficult

but may not even be proper for the court to infer that the accused

had been last seen alive with the deceased and the former, thus,

was responsible for commission of the offence. In the present case,

however, it is noticed from the evidence on record that deceased

Raman visited the house of Nalini accused No. 1 when the

appellants (accused Nos. 3 and 6) were also present in the house at

the relevant time. He did not come out of that house nor was seen

by anyone thereafter elsewhere. The dead body of Raman was taken

away in a vehicle for being dispose of, in which accused Nos. 3 and

6 also travelled. The two courts below have carefully analysed the

entire evidence to conclude that there was no other possibility

except that within all human probability the crime must have been

committed in particular by the appellants. It is well established that

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facts of each case must be appreciated on its own merits to draw

inference about the involvement of the accused in commission of

offence or otherwise. The case of Mohibur Rahman (supra) was

also a case of circumstantial evidence. On facts of that case, the

Court found that the circumstances were sufficient to conclusively

point out to the commission of murder of the deceased by the

accused, though the circumstances did not establish offence of

causing disappearance of the evidence. While dealing with the

factum of last seen together, the Court held that there must be a

close proximity between the event of accused last seen together with

the deceased. In the present case, as noted earlier, the courts below

have meticulously analyzed the prosecution evidence and have

found that the same established the guilt of appellants in the

commission of crime. On facts of the present case, no fault can be

found with the said concurrent findings recorded by the two courts

below. For the same reason, even the exposition in the cases of

Ashok and Mausam Singha Roy (supra) will be of no avail to the

appellants. As the same is in the context of facts of that case.

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31. In the case of Malleshappa (supra) the court found that no

witness had spoken about who gave the information to the police.

Further, the deceased was forcibly taken on 12.07.2001, while his

dead body was found on 21.07.2001 and what transpired during

the intervening period was not brought on record. The court also

noted that when the death of deceased actually occurred was also

not established. In the present case, however, evidence establishes

the fact that the deceased Raman entered the house of Nalini

accused No. 1 and was not seen thereafter. His dead body was

placed in a gunny bag which was then loaded in a vehicle in close

proximity of deceased Raman entering the house of Nalini on the

same day. The gunny bag after being loaded in the vehicle was

taken away in which accused Nos. 3 and 6 also accompanied. The

medical evidence supports the prosecution case that the death of

Raman occurred around 8th May, 2003 and the Doctor who

conducted the post mortem opined that it was a case of homicidal

death.

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32. In the case of Keshav (supra), the court held that in the case

of circumstantial evidence, conviction can be recorded on the basis

of motive. Further, the circumstance of last seen together becomes

relevant only if the death takes place shortly after accused and

deceased were last seen together. Even this decision is of no avail

to the fact situation of the present case, for the reasons already

discussed hitherto.

33. According to the learned counsel for the accused No.3, a joint

statement of all the accused was recorded by the Trial Court under

Section 313,Cr.P.C. This contention, in our opinion, is ill-founded.

We have examined the record and found that separate statement

under Section 313 of each accused has been recorded. It is a

different matter that their statements have been recorded in part on

different dates. That, in our opinion, does not vitiate the trial. Had it

been a case of all questions put to all the accused jointly and one

statement recorded by the Trial Court, it may have become

necessary for us to consider this argument. In the present case, we

find that separate statement of each accused under Section 313,

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has been recorded on different dates. That is substantial

compliance of Section 313, Cr.P.C.

34. The argument of accused No. 3 that he may be given the same

benefit as given to accused No. 7 is also liable to be rejected. We

say so because, the High Court has given tangible reason for

treating the case of accused No. 7 differently. As regards accused

No. 3, there is consistent evidence that he was present in the house

of Nalini at the relevant time and also participated in loading of the

gunny bag containing dead body of deceased Raman in the vehicle

and then travelling in the same vehicle for disposing the dead body

in a valley. This distinguishes his role from that of accused No.7.

The role of accused No. 3 has been rightly analyzed by the courts

below to be similar to accused No. 6 and liable for punishment for

the offence in question.

35. Reverting to the argument of accused No. 1, we reject the

same in so far as the circumstance of motive and last seen together

as we have affirmed the concurrent findings of the courts below in

that behalf. The decisions pressed into service by the counsel for

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the accused No. 1 have no bearing on the facts of the present case,

including against accused No.1.

36. That takes us to the argument of the counsel for the accused

No. 6 - that the dead body of the deceased was discovered at the

instance of accused Nos. 2 and 3 with which accused No. 6 had no

concern. The fact that accused No. 6 did not make similar

disclosure about disposal of dead body of Raman, as made by

accused No. 2 and 3, cannot absolve him. The courts below, in our

opinion, have rightly concluded that the concerned accused, in

particular accused Nos. 1, 3 and 6 were party to the conspiracy to

cause homicidal death of deceased Raman and for disposal of the

evidence of crime. We have already analyzed that aspect of the

matter in the earlier part of the judgment, which needs no

repetition.

37. The next argument of accused No.6 is that no blood stains

were noticed on the gold ring recovered at his instance. Even this

argument is devoid of merit. The fact that blood stains were not

found on the gold ring would not make the recovery inadmissible.

Similarly, the fact that the gold ring was freely available in the

market, would be of no avail to the said accused. The accused has

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not produced any evidence to explain the circumstances in which

the said gold ring came in his possession, which has been identified

by the prosecution witnesses as belonging to deceased Raman. The

fact that no mention was made about the said gold ring in the

statement of other accused, does not make the recovery doubtful

as the gold ring has been recovered on the basis of disclosure made

by the accused No. 6 himself after his arrest. On the same lines it

was contended by the counsel for accused No. 6 that the recovery of

cash amount from accused No. 6 cannot be used against him as

incriminatory evidence. In as much as, the prosecution has failed

to produce any legal evidence to establish the fact that the

currency recovered was part of the same amount which was

withdrawn by the deceased Raman from the Bank on 8th May,

2003. The fact that the entire amount of Rs. 58,000/- withdrawn

by the deceased Raman on 8th May, 2003 was not recovered by the

investigating agency also cannot be the basis to disregard the

complicity of accused No. 6, in view of the credible evidence about

his presence in the house of accused No. 1 Nalini at the relevant

time and of having assisted in loading the gunny bag carrying the

dead body of Raman in the vehicle and then travelling in the same

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vehicle to dispose of the dead body of Raman. Evidence in this

regard being clinching, absence of legal evidence regarding the

source from where the currency notes had come in possession of

accused No. 6 will be of no avail. The fact that the no blood stains

were found on the clothes of accused No. 6 will also be of no avail,

considering the overwhelming evidence about other relevant

circumstances indicating his complicity in the commission of crime.

38. In the case of Sunil Clifford Daniel (supra) the court held

that non-matching of blood group or absence of report regarding

origin of blood, no advantage can be conferred upon accused to

claim benefit of doubt. This decision also deals with the argument

canvassed by the appellants about absence of signature of accused

on the seizure memo/recovery memo. The court rejected that plea

and held that merely because the recovery was not signed by

accused, it will not vitiate the recovery itself. Further, every case

has to be decided on its own facts. Accordingly, even this contention

of the appellants must fail.

39. The argument that the memorandum under Section 27 of the

Evidence Act was a fabricated document as the signature of

accused was obtained on a blank paper, does not impress us .The

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courts below have considered the evidence on record and found that

the memorandum making disclosure about the gold ring in

possession of accused No. 6 was admissible and trustworthy. We

are not inclined to disturb the concurrent findings recorded by the

two courts below in that behalf.

40. The next argument of the counsel for the accused No. 6 is

that even if accused No.6 had failed to offer any valid explanation

regarding possession of gold ring of deceased Raman, he can at best

be proceeded for offence punishable under Section 411 of IPC and

not for the offence of murder. This submission is obviously an

argument of desperation. For, conviction simpilicitor under Section

411 of IPC or under Section 201/120B of IPC as rendered against

accused No. 7 would be possible, if evidence on other crucial facts

was absent. In so far as accused No. 6, there is clinching evidence

to hold against him on the basis of last seen together, seen loading

the gunny bag in the vehicle and then travelling in the same vehicle

for disposal of the dead body. This evidence cannot be disregarded.

The finding recorded by the Trial Court in favour of the acquitted

accused or by the High Court in favour of the accused No. 7, is not

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by disbelieving the evidence of the same prosecution witnesses. But,

it is in the context of the limited role of the concerned accused

established from the evidence of the same prosecution witnesses.

The accused No. 6 cannot take advantage of that finding, in view of

overwhelming evidence of his complicity in the commission of crime.

41. In view of the above, we hold that the appeals filed by accused

Nos. 1, 3 and 6 respectively, are devoid of merits.

42. We accordingly uphold the finding of guilt as against these

accused Nos.1,3 and 6 as recorded by the courts below as also the

sentence imposed in respect of the offence committed by them.

43. Hence these appeals fail and the same are dismissed. Accused

No.1 Nalini Dhapke, appellant in Criminal Appeal No.854/2010 and

accused No.6 Satish, appellant in Criminal Appeal No.11/2015 are

on bail. Their bail bonds shall stand cancelled and they are directed

to surrender before the Trial Court within four weeks from today for

undergoing the remaining period of sentence.

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…………………………….J. (Jagdish Singh Khehar)

…………………………….J. (Arun Mishra)

.……………………………J. (A.M.Khanwilkar)

New Delhi, Dated: January 3, 2017

KISHORE BHADKE Vs STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

KISHORE BHADKE Vs STATE OF MAHARASHTRA