- (1.) Appellants-A-1 and A-2 preferred this criminal appeal as against the judgment of the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Khammam, made in Sessions Case No. 80 of 1995, dated 02-05-1998.
(2.) The charge against the accused is under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC and the learned Judge, on appreciation of evidence, found A-l guilty for an offence under Section 304-I IPC, and found A-2 guilty for an offence under Section 304-I read with Section 34 IPC, and ultimately, convicted accused 1 and 2, and sentenced A-l to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of seven years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/- in default, to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment fortwo months, and sentenced A-2 to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of seven years and to pay a fine Rs.4,000/- in default, to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment two months.
(3.) The prosecution version is that Mukka Posham-P.W. 1 is the father of the deceased and the deceased-Muchakurthy Sukanya was the eldest among all his children. A-2 married the deceased in the year 1982, and the couple were blessed with three sons aged about 11,8 and 6 years respectively. A-l at the relevant point of time was residing at Yellandu, who was in search of a job, and since A-l was jobless, he used to visit his brother-A-2 on every payment day of A-2 and used to collect sum of Rs.100/- or Rs.200/- for his expenses. It is also the version of the prosecution that one year prior to the incident, there was rumor that the deceased developed illicit intimacy with one Gajja Sambaiah, a Badili filler of Padmavathikhani, resident of 7 incline and on that A-2 also started suspecting fidelity of the deceased and was subjecting her to cruelty by beating her. Two or three times, panchayats were held and it was resolved that both husband and wife should forget their past history and vices and lead normal life. It is also the version of the prosecution that the deceased continued her illicit intimacy with Gajja Sambaiah,, which came to the notice of the relatives of the deceased and also the accused. On 08-03-1994, A-1 visited the house of A-2 from Yellandu being the payment day and A-2 was not available, A-1 enquired the deceased about A-2 and left for 5 incline where he met his brother, had conversation, borrowed Rs.100/-. Subsequentthereto, both the accused attended the obsequies of one Sripathi Mallaiah, paternal uncle of the deceased-Sukanya. During the funeral procession, the friends and the relatives of the accused of the locality of 7 incline jeered and heckled at A-1 tarnishing his image that his sister-in-law still has been continuing illicit intimacy with Gajja Sambaiah, by that A-1 grew wild, met his brother-A-2, informed him that he will do away with the life of the deceased and since she brought down their image in the society. Subsequent thereto, A-2 went to the house, and after sometime A-1 went to the house of A-2 at about 18.00 hours and could find that his sister-in- law-deceased was sitting on a cot and conversating with her husband, who was sitting on the floor, and A-1 who was in a furious mood, picked up a "Mancham Kodu" and beat the deceased-Sukanya with it on left side of her head, causing bleeding injury to which she fell down of her back on the cot. A-1 brandished a knife and stabbed with it on her ribs, below left breast and on stomach and caused stab injuries. A-2 witnessed the incident, but did not resist A-l nor went to the rescue of the deceased and thus, indirectly aided hrs brother in killing his wife, uttering and encouraging his brother-A-1 to kill the wretched woman ruthlessly. A-1 hidden the weapons and left the spot. While A-1 was stabbing the deceased blood oozed out from the injuries of the deceased was sprinkled on his clothes. The same was witnessed by P.W. 2 and it was informed to P.W.1, who in turn had lodged Ex.P-1-complaint to the police.;