VISHNUDEO NARAYAN, J. - (1.) DEATH Reference No. 2 of 2002 under section 366 Cr.P.C. and Criminal Appeal aforesaid preferred by the appellant named above arise from the impugned judgment dated 11.9.2002 passed in S.T. No. 501 of 19961 T.R. No. 19 of 2002 by Sri Vijay Narayan Singh, Addl. Judicial Commissioner, Fast Track Court, Ranchi, whereby and whereunder appellant has been found guilty for the offence punishable under sections 302 and 307 I.P.C. and he was sentenced to death for the offence under section 302 I.P.C. The appellant was also sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life for the offence under section 307 LP.C. However, both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.
(2.) THE prosecution case has arisen on the basis of Fardbeyan (Ext. 11) of P.W. 10. Dhirja Nayak, one of the injured in this case, recorded by A.S.L, O.R. Trivedi. Ole: Lapung P.S. on 2.3.1996 at 22.15 hours in Village Karum regarding the occurrence which is said to have taken place between 5.30 P.M. and 6.15 P.M. in Village Karum P.S. Lapung, District Ranchi. The case was instituted as per the formal F.I.R (Ext.10) on 3.3.1996 at 12.30 hours on the basis of the Fardbeyan aforesaid and the formal F.I.R. along with Fardbeyan was received in the court of C.J.M., Ranchi on 4.3.1996. The prosecution case, in brief, is that P.W. 10, the informant was in his house at 5.30 P.M. when he heard alarms emanating towards the house of appellant Madras Nayak and he came out of his house and P.W. 11, Mati Ram Sahu came there raising alarms and told him that the appellant has committed the murder of his wife and children assaulting them by Tangi and the said appellant is coming to this side and asked him to flee away. It is alleged that the informant started fleeing away towards his courtyard of his house but in the meantime the appellant came inside his courtyard armed with blood stained Tangi (axe) and seeing the appellant, his wife Sannu Devi fled away from the courtyard and the appellant chased her from the courtyard of the informant and caught Sannu Devi in the Bari of Neema Horo and assaulted on her neck by the axe. It is alleged that seeing the assault on his wife Sannu Devi the informant rushed there to save her and at this the appellant gave a blow on the head of the informant as a result of which he fell down and thereafter the appellant gave further blows on his person which caused injury below his left eye and thereafter the appellant hurriedly came out from that place. It is alleged that the informant went to his wife and found her dead smeared with blood. It is also alleged that the informant came out of Bari aforesaid raising alarms and he saw the appellant chasing Budhu Sahu and gave a blow from his Tang; on the neck of Budhu Sahu as a result of which the said Budhu Sahu cried and fell in a well nearby. The prosecution case further is that the appellant saw Ugani Devi, the widow of Ram Lakhan Sah, going towards her house and he chased her and gave a Tangi blow on her face and when she fell down he dragged her inside his house and thereafter cry of Ugni Devi was heard coming from inside the said house. It is further alleged that the appellant thereafter again came out from his house armed with Dabli and he entered into the house of Mohar Pradhan which is situated in the west in front of his house and the female inmates of his house fled away raising alarms and the appellant assaulted an old blind lady Sukrmani Devi, who was sitting at the door of the house of Mohar Pradhan and committed her murder by Dabli. The prosecution case further is that the appellant ran from the house of Mohar Pradhan and entered into the house of Jagarnath Nayak from where the cry of Belly Nayak was heard which is to the effect that she and her daughter have been assaulted. It is also alleged that thereafter seeing P.W. 12, Kishun Singh coming from Champadih, the appellant ran towards him and assaulted him and Kishun Singh fell down being injured and from there the appellant entered into the house of Neel Kamal Sahu (P.W. 3) from where the cry of Neel Kamal Sahu was heard. The prosecution case further is that he has assaulted several persons chasing them on the road and also entering into the house of some other persons. A large numbor of persons, namely, Chamra Munda, Umesh Sahu, Ram Pradhan, Sudarshan Munda etc. of the village came to the place of occurrence on the alarms and they saw the occurrence and they also attempted to apprehend the appellant and thereafter the appellant threw the Dabli and fled away from the village. It is also alleged that thereafter the informant along with the villagers went to the house of the appellant where they found Sugni Devi, Vinod Nayak and Chermy Nayak i.e., the wife, son and daughter. respectively of appellant dead smeared with blood. It is also alleged that a hunt was made by the informant along with others but the appellant was not found and thereafter they went to Kakuria Police Outpost where no police officials were found and in the meantime the police came to the village. Lastly it has been alleged that the appellant has no enmity with any person of the village and he is not in a position to tell as to why the appellant has committed the murder of seven persons, namely, Sugni Devi, Vi nod Nayak, Chermy Nayak, Ugani Devi, Budhu Sahu, Sannu Devi and Sukrmani Devi and has injured Asha Kumari, Belly Nayak, Mati Ram Sahu, Premjit Nayak, Kishun Singh, Neel Kamal Sahu besides him.
(3.) THE appellant has pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against him and he claimed himself to be innocent and to have committed no offence. It has also been contended, inter alia, that the appellant was insane at the time of the occurrence and, as such, nothing is an offence which is done by a person who, at the time of doing it, by reason of unsoundness of mind, is incapable of knowing the nature of the act, or that he is doing what is either wrong or contrary to law as per the provisions contained under section 84 of the Indian Penal Code.;