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TMI Blog2015 (10) TMI 2851X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... was residing at Hissar. Pushpa Verma owned properties at Panipat and Gurgaon allotted through Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA for short). 3. The Appellant stands convicted for the offences of kidnapping Pushpa Verma and thereafter murdering her and for destroying the evidence by throwing her body in a canal. He is sentenced to life imprisonment and payment of fine of Rs. 10,000/- for the offence Under Section 302 Indian Penal Code and to rigorous imprisonment for five years and payment of fine of Rs. 5,000/- in default whereof to undergo further rigorous imprisonment for six months Under Section 364 Indian Penal Code and to rigorous imprisonment for five years and payment of fine of Rs. 5,000/-, in default whereof to undergo further rigorous imprisonment for six months Under Section 201 Indian Penal Code All the sentences are to run concurrently. The conviction and sentence as recorded by the trial court has been affirmed by the High Court in the judgment under appeal. 4. The instant matter has genesis in Daily Diary Report (Ext. PA) lodged with Police Post, Sector 13, Karnal, by Chander Prakash on 16.03.2003 giving "missing report" about his sister Pushpa Verma. Accor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ich were got cleared by the Appellant. c. On 12.11.2002 a Will (Ext. PG-1) was allegedly executed by said Pushpa Verma in favour of the Appellant in respect of her Gurgaon property. On the next day i.e. 13.11.2002 a general power of attorney was allegedly executed with respect to Gurgaon property in favour of the Appellant. The Will and the general power of attorney were also executed and registered with the office of the Sub-Registrar at Delhi. d. On 24.01.2003 an agreement (Mark PH) was entered into under which the Appellant agreed to transfer Gurgaon property in favour of prospective purchasers and received part consideration of Rupees 2.5 Lakhs (Rupees 1.5 Lakhs in cash while Rupees One Lakhs by way of a cheque in the name of the Appellant himself). On 24.03.2003, further sum of Rupees Three Lakhs was received by the Appellant and endorsement to that effect was made on the agreement itself. e. On 31.03.2003 a demand draft of Rupees Five Thousand towards the fees for seeking permission to transfer Gurgaon property was taken out and enclosed along with the application (Ext. PJ) seeking permission to transfer that property. This application was preferred by the Appellant in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... her often, that she started treating him as her son, that having come to know that she owned properties at different places he had become greedy, that he had given her some sedative in her tea, taken her to Delhi and got her signatures on the General power of attorney, that he sold away property at Panipat but kept all the money with himself and that he again took her to Delhi and got another general power of attorney executed in respect of Gurgaon plot. It was further confessed that in the month of January the Appellant felt that Pushpa Verma suspected some foul play and therefore the Appellant plotted a scheme to finish her. On 23.01.2003 she expressed desire to visit Haridwar, on which pretext he took her in a car and after having administered a sedative, throttled her and while she was unconscious near Roorkee, threw her body in a canal known as Gang Canal in between villages Liverheri and Mangalore. F. After the arrest of the Appellant, voter identity card Ext. P-12 of Pushpa Verma was recovered from the bushes near Gang Canal where her dead body was thrown. Such recovery was in pursuance of the disclosure statement of the Appellant Under Section 27 of the Evidence Act. In o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... at additional evidence be recorded at the appellate stage. The High Court directed that these applications be considered along with the appeal itself. 8. The High Court considered the matter and the circumstantial evidence placed on record. It found that the signatures of Pushpa Verma on the documents in question were a crude attempt at imitation and in one of the documents, namely, Will Ext. PG-1, the signature was "Pushpa Verma" instead of normal signature being "Pushpa Verma". The High Court found that the case against the Appellant stood completely established. As regards application Under Section 391 Code of Criminal Procedure, it was observed that the Appellant had taken the defence that the dead body recovered in Muzaffar Nagar was actually that of Pushpa Verma and in such circumstances it was imperative for him to have examined the expert in his defence at the trial court stage itself and that the report of the privately engaged Forensic Expert at such belated stage could not be allowed to be taken on record. The High Court thus dismissed the appeal affirming the conviction and sentence of the Appellant. 9. This judgment of the High Court is presently under appeal. Crl. M ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 11. At the outset, we must deal with submissions as regards application for leading additional evidence at the appellate stage. It has been the consistent defence of the Appellant that the dead body found in agricultural fields in District Muzaffar Nagar was that of Pushpa Verma and he went to the extent of producing photograph of the dead body in the present trial. He also examined Brahm Pal Singh, Sub-Inspector and other witnesses. It was certainly possible to examine Forensic Expert at the trial court stage itself and the High Court was right and justified in rejecting the prayer to lead additional evidence at the appellate stage. Nonetheless, we have gone through the report of said Forensic Expert engaged by the Appellant. The exercise undertaken by that expert is to start with the admitted photograph of Pushpa Verma on a computer, then remove the "bindi" by some process on the computer, then by same process remove her spectacles and by computer imaging change the image as it would have looked if the lady was lying down in an injured condition. The computer image so changed was then compared with the photograph of the dead body. We have seen both the images and we are not conv ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he payments are reflected in the account of Pushpa Verma. Receipt of Rs. 1,00,000/- by way of cheque in the name of Appellant himself is also a circumstance against the Appellant. The evidence thus shows that the Appellant had fabricated the documents in question and was attempting to defraud Pushpa Verma, as stated in the extra judicial confession. Further, by Ext. PH addressed to Pushpa Verma, a copy of which was sent to the Appellant, she was asked to remain personally present in the office of HUDA. There is nothing on record to show that the Appellant had undertaken any attempt, if he was genuinely acting as power of attorney on her behalf. We are satisfied that the circumstances on record, even if we were to disregard that relating to the recovery of Voter Identity Card Ext.P-12, do suggest only one hypothesis and that is the guilt of the Appellant. The defence set up by the Appellant does not inspire any confidence and merits rejection. The appeal, therefore fails and is dismissed. 14. Before we part, we must deal with the conduct of PW10 S.P. Meena. As Sub-Registrar, it was expected of him and was fundamental part of his duty to see that the persons who are entering into tr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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