NON-REPORTABLE

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CRIMINAL APPEAL No. 1443 OF 2008 [Arising out of S.L.P. (Crl.) No.566 of 2008]

Kallu @ Kalyan Atmaram Patil           .....

Appellant

Versus

State of  Maharashtra            .....       Respondent

J U D G M E N T

Lokeshwar Singh Panta, J.

1. Delay condoned.

2. Leave granted.

3.      Appellant has filed this appeal against the judgment and

order  dated  23.02.2006  passed  by  a  Division  Bench  of  the

High Court of Judicature of Bombay, Bench at Aurangabad in

Criminal Appeal No.649/2004 confirming the conviction and

sentence  of  imprisonment  for  life  in  respect  of  an  offence

punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code [for

short ‘IPC’] and a fine of Rs.500/- with a default stipulation of

imprisonment  for  six  months  awarded  by  the  learned

Additional  Sessions  Judge,  Amalner  on  29.09.2004  in

Sessions Case No.28/2000.

4. Brief facts, which led to the trial of the appellant, are as

follows:

Kallu  @ Kalyan Atmaram Patil,  appellant herein,  along

with 16 others were tried for the offences of rioting, murder of

Shivaji Patil and causing grievous hurt to PW-12 Deepak on

31.12.1999 at about 7.47 p.m.  The prosecution case was that

on the day of  the incident  at village  Mhasave  one  Vimalbai

Patil was elected as a Sarpanch of the village.  PW-12 Deepak

Patil  and  his  father  Shivaji  Patil  were  the  supporters  of

Vishwas Pahelwan, whereas the appellant and other accused

persons  supported  Vimalbai  Patil.   The  prosecution  alleged

that the appellant along with 20 to 25 more persons armed

2

with sticks and wooden rods proceeded towards the house of

PW-12 Deepak.  They asked PW-12 as to why he canvassed for

the  group  of  Vishwas  Pahelwan  in  the  Gram  Panchayat

Election.  The accused persons allegedly inflicted sticks blows

on the  head and forehead  of  PW-12 Deepak  and also  gave

beating to Shivaji Patil, who was standing on the platform of

his house.  The appellant alleged to have given stick blow on

the head of Shivaji Patil, who as a result thereof fell down and

became  unconscious.   PW-13  Vithoba  and  PW-14  Sukdeo

were also assaulted by the accused.  On seeing the co-villagers

coming on the scene of occurrence, the accused persons went

away.   Thereafter,  PW-15  Arun  Patil  with  the  help  of  one

Nimba and Vijay shifted PW-12 Deepak and his father Shivaji

Patil  to  Cottage  Hospital  at  Parola.   After  the  first-aid

treatment, PW-12 lodged complaint [Ext. 152], on the basis of

which First  Information Report  bearing  Crime No.210/1999

came  to  be  registered  against  17  accused  persons  under

Sections 307,  143,  147,  148,  149 and 452 of  IPC with the

Parola  Police  Station.   Shivaji  Patil  was  shifted  for  medical

treatment  to  Civil  Hospital,  Dhule.   On 01.01.2000,  Shivaji

3

Patil  succumbed to the injuries.   On his  death,  the offence

came to be converted to under Section 302 of IPC.  In Civil

Hospital at Dhule, Inquest  panchnama [Ext. 118] came to be

recorded in the presence of panch witness Vishwas Patil.   

5. PW-23  Dr.  Avinash  Ruikar  conducted  autopsy  on  the

dead body of Shivaji Patil and noticed the following two

external injuries:-

“[i]  C.L.W.  on  right  front  parietal  region  8.5 cm. x 1.4 cm.   Scalp deep.

[ii] Abrasion on left arm medially upper 1/3rd 3.8 x 0.2 cm.”

Both  the  injuries  were  found  ante  mortem.   On  internal

examination, doctor noticed haemorrhage all  over the skull.

There was also a crack fracture of left parietal bone.  As per

the post mortem notes [Ext. 212], Dr. Avinash opined that the

cause of death of the deceased Shivaji Patil was due to head

injury.   

6. PW-19  Jagatrao  Patil,  Police  Constable,  prepared

Panchnama  [Ext.  171]  of  the  clothes  of  the  deceased.

4

Spot Panchnama [Ext. 116] was recorded in the presence

of PW-1 Hemant Patil.  PW-22 P.I. Mahajan arrested the

accused persons on different dates.  At the instance of

the appellant, sticks were discovered which were seized

under  Panchnama  [Ext.  126].   The  seized articles  were

sent to the Chemical Analyser.  On receipt of the reports

of chemical analysis [Exts.  200 and 211],  charge sheet

was  filed  against  the  appellant  and  16  other  accused

persons  in  the  Court  of  J.M.F.C.  at  Parola,  who

committed the case to the Court of Additional Sessions

Judge at Amalner by order dated 31.03.2000.

7. The  trial  court  found  a  prima facie  case  against  the

appellant  and  other  accused  persons  under  Sections

143, 147, 148, 452 and 302 read with Sections 149 and

324  read  with  Section  149  of  IPC.   All  the  accused

pleaded not guilty to the charges and claimed to be tried.

During  trial  of  the  case,  the  prosecution  examined  as

many as  23  witnesses.   The  accused  persons  in  their

statements recorded under Section 313 of the Criminal

5

Procedure  Code  pleaded  that  Pankaj  Suryabhan  Patil

(accused No.7) was elected as Deputy Sarpanch, so the

prosecution witnesses belonging to opposite group were

annoyed and they had assaulted Suresh Suka, father of

Ananda Suresh Patil (accused no. 1).  The said incident

was  reported  to  the  Police  and  crime  was  registered

against  prosecution  witnesses  and  because  of  political

rivalry, the accused have been falsely implicated in the

case.     

8. The learned trial Judge, on analysis of the entire oral and

documentary evidence on record, held the appellant and

five  other  accused  persons  guilty  under  Sections  148,

302, 325 read with Section 149 of IPC.  They have been

acquitted for the offences under Sections 452, 504 read

with  Section  149  of  IPC.   Other  accused  have  been

acquitted for all the charges.

9. Being  aggrieved,  the  appellant  and  other  accused

persons filed  three  separate  sets  of  appeals  before  the

High Court.

6

10. The High Court acquitted the other accused for offence

under Sections 148 and 302 read with Section 149 of IPC

and convicted them for lesser offences.   Criminal Appeal

No.649 of 2004 filed by the appellant was partly allowed

to the extent that his conviction under Sections 148, 325

read with Section 149 of IPC and Section 302 read with

Section  149  of  IPC  is  set  aside  and  instead  he  is

convicted  under Section 302 IPC for murder  of Shivaji

Patil  and  aforesaid  sentence  has  been  imposed  upon

him.

11. Hence,  the  appellant  has  filed  this  appeal  by  special

leave  questioning  the  correctness  and  legality  of  the

judgment of the High Court.

12. This  Court  on  21.01.2008  issued  notice  to  the

respondent-State limited to the question of sentence.

13. We  have  heard  Mr.  Naresh  Kumar,  Advocate  for  the

appellant, and Mr. Ravindra Keshavrao Adsure, Advocate

for  the  respondent-State  and  with  their  assistance

examined the material on record.

7

14.     On scrutiny of the oral evidence of PW-12 Deepak, it

stands proved that the appellant has inflicted single stick blow

on the  head of  Shivaji  Patil  which proved  to  be  fatal.   The

second  injury  found  on the  person  of  the  deceased  by  Dr.

Avinash was in the nature of abrasion on left arm.  The other

eyewitnesses  including  the  injured  witnesses  have  not

supported  the  prosecution  case.   The  evidence  of  PW-12

Deepak  is  not  sufficient  to  establish  that  the  appellant

inflicted  fatal  injury  on  the  head  of  the  deceased  with  an

intention  to  cause  his  death  or  with  a  knowledge  that  the

injury so inflicted shall cause the death of the deceased in the

ordinary course of nature.  It is also found from the evidence

of PW-12 that no other injury was caused by the appellant to

the  deceased  after  he  became  unconscious.   The  ocular

evidence  of  PW-12  Deepak  corroborated  by  the  medical

evidence,  in  our  opinion,  would  prove  that  the  offence

committed by the appellant fell  under  Section 304 Part-I  of

IPC  and  not  under  Section  302  of  IPC.   We,  accordingly,

convict  the  appellant  under  Section  304  Part-I,  IPC,  for

causing the death of Shivaji Patil and sentence him to suffer

8

rigorous  imprisonment  for  ten  years  and  to  pay  a  fine  of

Rs.500/-.  In default of payment of fine, the appellant shall

undergo simple imprisonment for one month.   

15. In the result,  for the afore-said reasons,  this appeal  is

partly allowed to the extent of holding the appellant guilty of

the  offence  punishable  under  Section  304  Part-I,  IPC,  and

imposing the aforesaid sentence upon him.  The judgment and

order  of  the  High  Court  confirming  the  conviction  of  the

appellant  under  Section  302,  IPC,  and  sentencing  him  to

undergo  imprisonment  for  life  shall  stand  modified  to  the

extent indicated hereinabove.

........................................J.                                                 (R. V. Raveendran)

........................................J.                                                (Lokeshwar Singh Panta)

New Delhi, September 10, 2008.

9