- (1.) This appeal has been preferred against the impugned judgment and order dated 1.4.2009, passed by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh in Criminal Appeal No. 399-DB of 2000, by which it has affirmed the judgment and order dated 21.8.2000 passed by the Sessions Judge, Ludhiana in Sessions Case No. 28 of 1996, convicting the appellant under Sections 302 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter referred to as the 'IPC'), and awarded him a sentence to undergo RI for life and to pay a fine of Rs.2,000/- and in default of this, to undergo further RI for a period of 3 months. The appellant has further been sentenced to undergo RI for two years and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/- and in default of this, to undergo further RI for a period of 2 months under Section 201 IPC. It has further been directed that the sentences would run concurrently.
(2.) The facts and circumstances giving rise to this appeal are as under: A. The appellant got married to Dr. Loyalla Shagoufta, deceased, on 29.10.1993. Both of them being qualified doctors, were working in the Christian Medical College (hereinafter referred to as 'CMC'), Hospital Ludhiana. The relationship between the husband and wife became strained and they have been living separately since June 1994. B. As per the appellant, a petition for divorce by mutual consent was filed on 20.2.1996, under Section 28 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 in the Court of the District Judge, Ludhiana, and both parties therein, appeared before the District Judge, Ludhiana on the first motion of the case. However, they were asked to wait for the second motion. C. On 9.3.1996, the appellant handed over a set of blood stained clothes to Dr. B. Pawar, the Medical Superintendent, (PW.1), stating that when he came to his room that day, the same were found therein. Dr. B. Pawar (PW.1), informed the police about the said incident on the same date. D. Dr. Loyalla Shagoufta, wife of the appellant, had informed her mother Smt. Victoria Rani (PW.2), who was living in Jagadhari, District Yamunanagar, by way of a telephone call on 6.3.1996, that she would visit her on 8.3.1996. However, she did not reach Jagadhari on 8.3.1996. Victoria Rani (PW.2), then came to Ludhiana on 10.3.1996, and found that her daughter was missing. Smt. Victoria Rani (PW.2) then lodged FIR No. 16 of 1996 on 10.3.1996, at 9.40 p.m. wherein being the complainant, she expressed her apprehension that the appellant herein, had abducted her daughter with the intention of killing her. E. In the meanwhile, Dr. Namrata Saran, one of the residents of the hostel in which the deceased resided, also informed Dr. B. Pawar (PW.1), Medical Superintendent that the deceased had in fact been missing from the hostel since 9.3.1996. After an enquiry it came to light that the deceased was on leave from 9.3.1996 to 16.3.1996. F. Piara Singh, ASI (PW.13), took up the investigation of the case and went to the appellant's hostel, however, his room No.2010, was found to be locked. A police party searched for the appellant, among several other places, in the house of Mr. Rana, one of his relatives, but he could not be traced/found anywhere. Dr. B. Pawar (PW.1) handed over the blood stained clothes given to him by the appellant, to the I.O. G. On 11.3.1996, Vir Rajinder Pal (PW.14), SHO, Police Station, Ludhiana received a wireless message at 9.00 a.m., from the Police Chowki at Lalton Kalan, which is about 20 k.m. away from the main city, informing him that the dead body of a female had been found, lying in the bushes, near the main road. The Investigating Officer took Victoria Rani (PW.2) with him, while accompanied by other police personnel, and recovered the body of the deceased from the said place. H. Immediately after the recovery of the dead body, Vir Rajinder Pal (PW.14), visited the room of the appellant in the hostel and conducted a thorough search of the same, in the presence of Dr. B. Pawar (PW.1), Medical Superintendent. I. The post-mortem of the deceased was conducted by a Medical Board consisting of three doctors, including Dr. U.S. Sooch (PW.11), on 11.3.1996. He opined that the deceased had died by way of strangulation and a corresponding ligature mark was found on her neck. She also had several grievous injuries to her head. J. On 11.3.1996, the Investigating Officer came to know, in the course of interrogation that, the appellant had used the car of one Dr. Pauli (CW.2), and that a blood stained mat was lying in the dicky of the said car. The police hence took possession of the said car and mat, and sent the mat for preparation of an FSL report. K. The appellant was arrested on 11.3.1996, and his room in the hostel was searched yet again, by one Ashok Kumar, Head Constable from the Forensic Department, who scraped some blood stained earth from the floor of the room. He also found a pair of blood stained white V-shaped, Hawaii chappals. Photographs of the said room were also taken. During interrogation, the appellant made a disclosure statement on 13.3.1996 to the effect that he would be able to help in the recovery of some relevant material from a place where he had hidden it. The appellant then led the police party to a place behind Old Jail, Ludhiana. From there, after removing some garbage etc., one blood stained gunny bag, a blood stained dumb-bell and one blood stained tie, were recovered. L. The said recovered articles alongwith the clothes etc., found on the body of the deceased at the time of the post-mortem, and the blood stained clothes given by the appellant to Dr. B. Pawar (PW.1), which were subsequently handed over to the Investigating Officer, were sent for FSL report. M. The FSL and serological report was then received, and it revealed that, all the articles recovered by the police during investigation, including the blood stained floor of his room, a part of the Hawaii chappals, and the recovered tie, contained human blood, with the sole exception of the mats found in the dicky of the car. The blood stains herein, had dis-integrated and it was therefore not possible to ascertain whether the same also contained human blood. N. The police completed the investigation of the case and submitted a charge sheet against the appellant. The case was converted from one under Section 364, to one under Sections 302 and 201 IPC. The appellant was thus charged, but as he pleaded not guilty, he claimed trial. The prosecution examined 15 witnesses and two court witnesses were also examined under Section 311 of Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (hereinafter called as 'Cr.P.C.'). O. After the conclusion of the trial and appreciation of the evidence in full, the learned Sessions Judge, vide judgment and order dated 21.8.2000 found the appellant guilty on both counts and hence awarded him the aforementioned punishments. P. Aggrieved, the appellant preferred Criminal Appeal No.399-DB of 2000 before the High Court, which was dismissed by the impugned judgment and order dated 1.4.2009. Hence, this appeal.
(3.) Mrs. Kanchan Kaur Dhodi, learned counsel appearing for the appellant, submitted that the investigation was not conducted fairly. She stated that the appellant herein, had no motive whatsoever to commit the murder of his wife, and that they were going to separate very soon, as both parties had filed an application seeking divorce, by mutual consent. Further, no recovery was made from the room of the appellant in the hostel, rather the objects recovered had been planted. The appellant did not make any disclosure statement. Thus, even the recovery made from the place in close vicinity of the Old Jail, was not made in accordance with law, as there was no independent witness with respect to the said recoveries, and the recovery memo also, was never signed by the appellant. It is therefore, a case of circumstantial evidence. The courts below failed to appreciate that the chain of circumstances is not complete. Hence, the appeal deserves to be allowed.;