LODHA, J - (1.)THESE are two connected appeals arising out of the judgment dated 3-11-1970 by the Sessions Judge, Merta who sentenced the appellants as follows - Name of accused Convicted under Sentenced to 1. Laxmandas U/s. 302 read with S. 34 IPC. Rigorous imprisonment for life and a fine of Rs. 100/- in default of payment of fine to undergo further 6 month's rigorous imprisonment. 2. Smt. Bhanwari U/s. 302 read with 34 IPC. Sentenced to life imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 100/- ; in default of payment of fine to undergo further 6 months' rigorous imprisonment. 3. Jagdish U/s. 302 IPC. Sentenced to life imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 100/-; in default of payment of fine to undergo further 6 month's rigorous imprisonment. "
(2.)LAXMANDAS and Jagdish have filed a joint appeal through Jail and their appeal has been registered as D. B. Criminal (Jail ) Appeal No. 243 of 1971. Smt. Bhanwari has filed a separate appeal through Jail and her apperl has been registered as No. 428 of 1971. Since all the three appellants were unrepresented we appointed Shri G. L. Agarwal to argue the case on their behalf free of charge. However, after the case had remained part-heard on 6-5-1975 Shri M. B. L. Bhargava put in appearance and submitted that he had been engaged by convict Jagdish to argue his appeal. Thereupon we adjourned the hearing of the case.
We have heard Mr. Agarwal on behalf of Laxmandas and Shrimati Bhan-wari and Mr. A. K. Bhandari who has appeared to argue the matter on behalf of Mr. M. B. L. Bhargava counsel for the convict Jagdish.

The facts of the case lie within a narrow compass. The appellant Smt. Bhan-wari was first married to Hiradas. Then in the life time of Hiradas she performed second marriage with Modadas. She again left Modadas and married the deceased Ramnarayan. It is alleged by the prosecution that she developed illicit relationship with the accused Laxmandas, brother of the deceased Ramnarayan, alias Narayandas. The appellant Jagdish was born to Smt. Bhanwari out of her marriage with Modadas. The prosecution case is that on the night between 10th and 1lth July, 1969 all the three accused viz. Laxmandas, Smt. Bhanwari and Jagdish killed the deceased Narayandas in their own house in village Ren, Police Station, Merta Road, and then burried his dead body in the 'sat' of the house. P. W. 1 Smt. Kamla, daughter of Smt. Bhanwari, witnessed the murder as well as the burial of the dead body but she was threat end not to disclose this fact to any body. Consequently she remained silent till the Police interrogated her on 10th August, 1969.

The crime came to light in this manner. An anonymous report Ex. P. 14 was received at the Police Station, Merta Road on 7 8-1969 wherein it was mentioned that the whereabouts of Ramnarayan had not been known since 10-7-1969. This report has been placed on the record and marked Ex P. 14. On receipt of this report the Station House Officer, Police Station, Ren, P. W. 12 Ummed Singh reached the village Ren and started enquiry into the correctness of the report. On making enquiries at the spot he came to the conclusion that Ramnarayan had been killed by the accused on the night intervening 10th and 11th July, 1969 and thereupon he registered the case under sec. 302 I. P. C. and started regular investigation. He arrested the accused on 9-8-1969. The accused Jagdish soon after his arrest gave information to the Station House Officer that he had concealed the dead body of the deceased Narayandas in the 'sal' of his house The information was reduced to writing by the Station House Officer and is marked Ex. P 15 On the next day i. e. 10-8-1969 Jagdish pointed out the place where the dead body had been concealed in the presence of Sub-divisional Magistrate Shri Satyendra Nath (P. W. 11), Dr. S. K. Lodha (P. W. 5) and motbirs P. W. 9 Razak and Ghewarchand. The recovery memo of the dead body was prepared by Ummed Singh (P. W. 12) and the same is marked Ex. P. 10. The postmortem examination of the dead body conducted by Dr. S. K. Lodha revealed the following injuries: - (1) The body was found shrunken. Skin was dry and peels of at places, and common salt was lying on the body. Skin of the face found destroyed. (2) There was a wound a which was soiled with sand 8" in length extending from upper boarder of thyroid cartilage to the right side of exila. "

The wound was going upto cervical vertebrae in neck and about 1/4" deep on chest, 3rd and 4th trachea cartilage were found broken. There was wound on the body of 3rd cervical vertebrae about 1/2" deep. There was dislocation of right sterno-claricular joint. In the wound of the neck all the blood vessels of the right side of the neck were found severed including right superior venacavae just above clavicle. Eye balls were completely destroyed. The duration of the death according to the doctor was 1 to 2 months. The doctor has further opined that the cause of death was shock resulting from bleeding from injury on the neck. The doctor has further said that the injuries found on the dead body were sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death.

(3.)ON 11-8-1969 the accused Jagdish again gave information regarding the axe alleged to have been used in the crime. Information memo has been marked Ex. P. 16. The axe was seized on 15-8-1969 and the seizure memo is Ex. P. 9. ON 14-8-1969 the accused Smt. Bhanwari gave information regarding presence of blood stains on her clothes alleged to have been worn by her at the time of commission of the crime. This information was reduced to writing and marked Ex. P. 17 and the seizure memo of her clothes is Ex. P. 11. ON 12-8-1969 the accused Laxmandas gave information regarding presence of blood stains on a cot on which the deceased was sleeping. This information is marked Ex. P. 18 and the memo of recovery of the cot is Ex. P. 12, dated 15 8-1969. It may, however, be mentioned that in case of none of these articles the Serologist has found stains of human blood and therefore these recoveries are not of much assistance to the prosecution in connecting the accused with the crime. The prosecution has also placed on record an Inland Letter Ex. P. 1 purporting to have been scribed at the instance of the accused Laxmandas and Smt. Bhanwari and posted from Bhilwara. It purports to be written by the deceased Narayandas from Bhilwara and addressed to the accused Laxmmdas wherein it is written that he would stay for some time in Malwa. After collecting all this evidence the Police challaned the accused in the Court of Additional Munsiff-Magistrate, Merta, who by his order dated 25-6-1970 commit-ted them for trial to the Court of Sessions Judge, Merta. The accused denied having committed the offence. The Sessions Judge convicted and sentenced the accused as already mentioned above.
After having heard learned counsel for the parties and after perusing the relevant record, we find that the case against the accused rests on the direct evidence of P. W 1 Smt. Kamla, recovery of the dead body of Ramnarayan from his house and other recoveries, and lastly the letter Ex. P. 1. We may add, however, that the conduct of the three accused is an additional circumstance which may be taken into consideration.

P. W. 1 Smt. Kamla is a girl of 15 years. She has stated that her father Ramnarayan was murdered in his house in village Ren by her mother Smt. Bhanwari, her uncle Laxmandas and her brother Jagdish That night she slept with her younger sister Smt Geeta on one cot, in the court-yard, in front of the 'sal' of the house and her mother Smt. Bhanwari was also sleeping at a distance of 5 to 7 Pawandas from her. She further states that the accused Laxmandas and Jagdish were also sleeping on cot at a distance of 2 to 3 Pawandas from her cot. Her father Narayandas came into the house after the night had advanced. He knocked at the door and Smt. Bhanwari woke up and opened the door and, after Narayandas had came in bolted it from inside. Narayandas also slept on a cot lying there at a distance of about 14 steps from her cot. The witness fell asleep and suddenly she heard the cries of her father and saw that Narayandas had fallen from the cot and the accused Jagdish was holding an axe in his hands while Laxmandas had caught his feet and her mother Smt. Bhanwari his hands. The witness further states that she saw injury on the throat of her father wherefrom there was profuse bleeding. She saw the whole incident while sitting on the cot and began to weep, and thereupon Laxmandas, Jagdish and Smt. Bhanwari threatened her that if she disclosed the incident to anybody she too would be put to death and buried by the side of her father. She has stated that after killing her father, Jagdish put sand on the injury in order to check the bleeding. Accused Laxmandas and Jagdish put stones on the chest of Narayandas and then all the three went inside the 'sal' and dug a pit infront of the almirah in that 'sal'. Smt. Bhanwari had a spade, Laxmandas had an axe and Jagdish a 'kassi'. Having dug a pit with these instruments the accused lay the dead body of Narayandas in the pit and put salt over it, and then plastered the ground with mud. She also stated that her mother Smt. Bhanwari had developed illicit intimacy with her uncle Laxmandas and her father used to rebuke her mother for that. This led to the perpetration of the crime. She also stated that she, her father Narayandas, her brother Jagdish and her uncle Laxmandas and so also her mother Smt. Bhanwari used to live jointly in the same house. In the course of cross-examination on behalf of the accused the witness turned hostile and stated that she had made a statement implicating the accused at the instance of the Police. Thereupon she was permitted to be cross examined by the prosecution and on an application made in that behalf, her statement in the committing court marked Ex. D. 3 was taken on the record of the trial court under sec. 288 Cr. P. C. wherein she had supported the statement made by her in examination-in chief in the trial court.