Debiprasad Sengupta, J. - (1.) The present appeal is preferred against the judgment and order of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, 4th Court, Burdwan in Sessions Case No. 18 of 1997 (Sessions Trial No. 1 of 2000) thereby convicting the appellant under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and sentencing him to suffer imprisonment for life and a fine of Rs. 2,000/-, in default to suffer further R.I. for two months.
(2.) Prosecution case, in short, is that the informant Joydeb Mitra (P.W.I) having received an information over telephone from P.W. 2 Sohanlal Routh on 2.12.94 at about 1.30 p.m. that one Kartick Debnath poured kerosene oil on his wife and set fire on her, rushed to the brick field, of which he is one of the partners and the accused is a worker. The informant after reaching the place of occurrence, i.e. the house of accused Kartick Debnath in the brick field, found the accused Kartick detained by the workers of the brick field and the victim Bulbuli already brought to Kalna Hospital for treatment. The informant (P.W.1) thereafter reported the incident to Kalna P.S., on the basis of which FIR was registered.
(3.) After the victim was taken to hospital her dying statement was recorded by the S.D.O. (P.W.17) in presence of P.Ws. 11,14 and 16, i.e. staff nurses and Dr. Pramatha Nath Dutta. Such dying declaration was marked as Exhibit - 4.;