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TMI Blog1997 (8) TMI 513X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in sarcasm, they have not crossed the literary limit and have adhered to a particular standard of nobility of language. Even when a member of her own species, Madame De Stael, remarked I am glad that I am not a man; for then I should have to marry a woman , there was wit in it. When Shakespeare wrote, Age cannot wither her; nor custom stale; Her infinite variety , there again was wit. Notwithstanding that these writers have cried hoarse for respect for Woman , notwithstanding that Schiller said Honour Women! They entwine and weave heavenly rose in our earthly life. and notwithstanding that Mahabharat mentioned her as the source of salvation, the crime against woman continues to rise and has, today undoubtedly, risen to alarming proportions. 4. It is unfortunate that in an age where people are described as civilised, crime against Female is committed even when the child is in the womb as the female foetus is often destroyed to prevent the birth of female child. If that child comes into existence, she starts her life as a daughter, then becomes a wife and in due course, a Mother. She rocks the cradle to rear up her infant, bestows all her love on the child and as the c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and, therefore, they had come to this house for the night halt. As promised, the appellant with his wife and the child left the house in the early morning and came to Ashoka Lodge in Belgaum where he checked in Room No. 113 at 9.30 A.M. on 09.09.85. That was the most unfortunate, as also, the last day in Padmavathi s life. At about 12.00 Noon, the appellant came to the reception counter of Ashoka Lodge and informed the people there that his wife has died of heart-attack and that he was going to bring his relations. he left the Lodge , with child in his lap, never to come back. Her gave the child to a lady called Gangavva, in village Halaga who, later, sent the child to Padmavathi s father. 9. The police was informed of the matter in due course which visited the Lodge and held the inquest. The body of Padmavathi was sent for post mortem examination which revealed that Padmavathi had died not because of cardiac arrest, but on account of asphyxia. Her death was homicidal. 10. The police arrested, challenged and prosecuted the appellant, who was found not guilty by the trial court but the High Court, on appeal by the State, reversed the verdict and convicted the appella ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that it has to consider each of the grounds which has prompted the trial court to pass the order of acquittal and to record its own reasons for not agreeing with the trial court. 15. In State of Uttar Pradesh vs. Samman Das, AIR 1972 SC 677 - (1972) 3 SCR 58, this Court again reiterated the above principles and pointed out that there were certain cardinal rules which had always kept in view in appeal against acquittal. It was pointed out that there is a presumption of innocence in favour of the accused especially when he has been acquitted by the trial court. It was further to be kept in view that if two views of the matter are possible. the view which favours the accused has to be adopted. The Appellate Court has also to keep in view the fact that the trial judge has the advantage of looking at the demeanour of witnesses and that the accused is still entitled to the benefit of doubt. The doubt should be such as a rational thinking person will reasonably, honestly and conscientiously entertain and not the doubt of an irrational mind. (See also : Sohrab vs. State of Madhya Pradesh, (1973) 1 SCR 472 = (1972) 3 SCC 751 = AIR 1972 SC 2020; Ediga Sanjnna vs. State of Andhra Pradesh, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eep in mind that even at that stage, the accused was entitled to benefit of doubt. The doubt should be such as a reasonable person would honestly and conscientiously entertain as to the guilt of the accused. 17. It is in the light of these principle that it has to be seen whether the High Court, in the instant case, was justified in reversing the order of acquittal. 18. Before taking up this task, it may be stated that for a crime to be proved, it is not necessary that the crime must be seen to have been committed and must in all circumstances, be proved by direct ocular evidence by examining before the Court those persons who had seen its commission. The offence can be proved by circumstantial evidence also. The principle fact or factum probandum may be proved indirectly by means of certain inferences drawn from factum probans , that is, the evidentiary facts. To put it differently, circumstantial evidence is not direct to the point in issue but consists of evidence of various other facts which are so closely associated with the fact in issue that taken together, they form a chain of circumstances from which the existence of the principal fact can legally inferred or pres ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dence relied on is reasonably capable of two inference, the one in favour of the accused must be accept. It was also pointed out that the circumstances relied upon must be found to have been fully established and the cumulative effect of all the facts so established must be consistent only with the hypothesis of guilt. 23. What is important is that the possibility of the conclusions being consistent with the innocence of the accused must be ruled out altogether. 24. Let us now delve into the merits. 25. In order to prove its case, the prosecution has examined many witnesses to establish the link between the appellant and the crime. Paris Savant Kaggodi (P.W. 8) stated that his daughter Padmavathi was married to the appellant who was being ill-treated at the house of her inlaws principally because the appellant entertained a doubt that she was having extra marital relationship with Gundu Badasad. When Padmavathi became pregnant, she came to live with her parents and at the house of her parents, she gave birth to a child. 26. The learned Session Judge and the High Court have both found that this part of the statement of Padmavathi s father has not been challenged and, the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... had turned hostile. 30. Gangavva (P.W. 3), with whom the child was left by the appellant on his return from Lodge , was the witnesss who was treated as hostile. Even if her statement is excluded, the main part of the prosecution story that the appellant had come with Padmavathi to Ashoka Lodge where they had occupied Room No. 113 is not affected. Their presence in Ashoka Lodge is testified by Ajit (P.W. 2), the room-boy of Ashoka Lodge . Padmavathi was, therefore, last seen in the company of the appellant. The appellant left the Lodge on the pretext that his wife had died and he was going to call his relations. But he did no return. His conduct of not returning back to Room No. 113 eloquently indicates that he, in order to avoid arrest, did not return to Lodge . He left the dead body of Padmavathi lying in Room No. 113 to be found out there by the hotel and police people. An innocent person would not have behaved in that fashion. His innocence would have been reflected in his conduct of coming back to the Lodge . 31. Apart from the appellant s conduct in not returning to Ashoka Lodge , aft having left the Lodge at 12.00 Noon, another conduct of the appellant is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... om immediately before the death of Padmavathi and his conduct in not coming back to the Lodge are circumstances strong enough to establish his guilt. 34. Some dispute appears to have been raised before the High Court as also before us that the hotel records should not be relied upon to indicate that the appellant had stayed in Ashoka Lodge . 35. Ajit (P.W. 2), room-boy of the Lodge , in his statement on oath, has given out that the appellant had come with his wife and child to the Ashoka Lodge and had taken one Room on the ground-floor for his stay. The necessary entry (Ex.P1(a)) was made by the Manager of the Lodge in the Register of Lodgers . The appellant had put his signature on the Register which is Ex.P1(b). The appellant, his wife and the child had been taken by the room-boy to Room No. 113 where he also supplied an extra bed. The hotel Manager, though mentioned as a witness in the charge-sheet, was not examined as he had already left the service of the Lodge . These facts stand proved by the statement of the room-boy and the High Court has already recorded a finding that the appellant had stayed in Room No. 113 of the Ashoka Lodge . 36. The original reco ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Court itself. 38. As a matter of extreme caution and judicial sobriety, the Court should not normally take upon itself the responsibility of comparing the disputed signature with that of the admitted signature of handwriting and in the event of slightest doubt, leave the matter to the wisdom of experts. But this does not mean that the Court has not power to compare the disputed signature with admitted signature as this power is clearly available under Section 73 of the Act. (See : State (Delhi Administration) vs. Pali Ram, AIR 1979 SC 14 = (1979) 2 SCC 158) 39. We have already recorded above that on the comparison of the signature in the Register of Lodgers with the appellant s signature on the Vakalatnama , we have not found any dissimilarity and are convinced that the appellant himself had signed the Register of Lodgers in token of having taken Room No. 113 in Ashoka Lodge on rent wherein he had stayed with his wife and the child. 40. On an overall consideration of the matter, we are of the opinion that the High Court, in reversing the judgment of the trial court, had fully adhered to the principles laid down by this Court in various decisions and there is no in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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