An appeals court dismissed a conviction appeal in an IPC 302 murder case involving a child victim, finding that corroboration from adult witnesses and medical reports validated the prosecution evidence despite gaps in the physical recovery.
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AFR
HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH, BILASPUR
CRA No. 78 of 2020
---- Appellant
Versus
---- Respondent
For Appellant : Mr. K.P. Sahu, Advocate. For State/respondent : Mr. Vikram Sharma, Dy. G.A.
Hon'ble Shri Justice Goutam Bhaduri, J. & Hon’ble Shri Justice Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal, J. Order on Board
Per Hon’ble Shri Justice Goutam Bhaduri
,
Date – 19/06/2023
Heard.
| Offence Under Section | Sentence |
|---|---|
| Life Imprisonment and fine of Rs. 1000/-, in default | |
| 302 of IPC | of payment of fine amount additional imprisonment for 3 months. |
collect leaves in the forest wherein in between 9:00 to 9:05 am., the accused assaulted the deceased by way of an axe, on his neck. The report having been made, the investigation started and it revealed two witnesses namely Rajsingh and Harun Manjhwar who accompanied the deceased had seen the incident. Thereafter, the accused/appellant was apprehended and on his memorandum the
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weapon used in the offence i.e. axe was recovered. Since the death was homicidal in nature after thorough investigation the charge-sheet was filed before the judicial Magistrate who in turn committed the same to the sessions Court.
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05.05.2019, which was reported vide Ex.-P-1, so the merg was registered after the receipt of the report. The panchnama was prepared vide Ex.-P-6 and was sent for postmortem. Dr. T. Singh (PW-10) conducted the postmortem Ex.-P-17, the following injuries were found on the body of the deceased:
(i). Incised wounds were found in the right part of the throat, both the ends of the wound were sharp, which started from the cervical area to the right ear. The cervical vertebra of the deceased and the lower jaw was broken, which was 13 cm in length, width 6 cm and depth 12 cm in the middle.
(ii). Incised wounds were found in the back of the right shoulder, both the ends of the wound were sharp, which had a length of 6 cm, width 2.5 cm and depth was inside the muscle.
(iii). The right and occipital area of the head had a torn wound with a size of 3 x 2 cm, to the depth of the scalp.
Sakhare V. Stated of Maharashtra , reported in (1997) 5 SCC 341 , wherein it was held that when a child witness was found competent to depose to the facts and reliable one such evidence could be the basis of conviction. The Court further observed that even in absence of oath, the evidence of a child witness can be considered under Section 118 of the Evidence Act which provide that such witness is able to understand the questions and able to give rational answers thereof. Primarily this was the note of caution which the Court should bear in mind while assessing the evidence of a child witness to be a reliable one. The Section 118 of Evidence Act envisages that all persons shall be competent to testify, unless the Court considers that they are prevented from understanding the
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questions put to them or from going rational answers to the questions, because of tender years or old age or disease. Therefore the child of tender age can be allowed to testify, if he has intellectual capacity to understand the questions and give rational answers. The proposition to evaluate the statement of child witness was stated in the case of Wheeler v. United States , 159 US 523 , wherein it was held that the evidence of child witness is not required to be rejected per se , but the court as a rule of prudence considers such evidence with close scrutiny and only on being convinced about the quality thereof and reliability can record conviction.
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Sd/Sd/- (Goutam Bhaduri) (Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal) Judge Judge
H.L. Sahu
2 issues framed by the court
Whether conviction based on uncorroborated child witness testimony surpasses legal standards of due process.
Whether the disputed medical evidence regarding the presence of blood on the recovered weapon vitiated the prosecution case.
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
Ratansingh Dalsukhbhai Nayak Vs. State of GujaratReferred¶32
(2004) 1 SCC 64 · Who else cites this
Dattu Ramrao Sakhare V. State of MaharashtraReferred¶32
(1997) 5 SCC 341 · Who else cites this
Sukhiram Nishad
State of Chhattisgarh
Goutam Bhaduri
Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
