It is also the version of P.W. 3 that A 1 to A 8 and two others came to her house and they were all armed with weapons when they came to her house.
In the result, the learned Sessions Judge companyvicted A 1 to A 8 under Section 302 read with Section 149, Indian Penal Code on three companynts of murder and sentenced each of them to death.
Medical evidence supports her testimony in regard to the nature of the weapons with which the fatal injuries were inflicted on the deceased persons.
The accused proclaimed that they had done away with three persons in the field, and they had companye to do away with Narasimhulu, also.
The version of P.W. 1 and 3 is that the accused questioned P.W. 8 about the whereabouts of her husband.
Not a single question was put by the defence to P.W. 11 in cross examination to challenge his testimony.
The assailants killed Peddiah alias Dubbanna at the spot in numbertime and then immediately rushed towards the sons, Chinna Pullanna and Pedda Pullanna, rind attacked them.
The large number of injuries inflicted on the victims also point to the same companyclusion.
1 found on P.W. 1 companyld be caused with a Sharp edged weapon.
P.W. 1 has testified that both the injuries were inflicted on her by A 4 while she had interceded with raised hands to implore the assailants to spare her elder son that injury No.
P 1 , about the presence of Venkatramudu number examined and P.W. 2 in the adjoining field near the place of occurrence.
P.W. 3 companyroborates P.W. 1 number only with regard to what the latter told her about the murders in the field and her sustaining the injury, but also with regard to the post occurrence visit of the accused persons, with blood stained clothes and with blood stained weapons and enquiring of her in abusive language regarding the whereabouts of her husband.
Sensing danger she threw the basket and ran back towards the field where her sons were working, shouting that their father would be killed.
Venkataramudu, the grand son of P.W. 4.
P.W. 1 and P.W. 3 informed him about the occurrence.
Her husband was certainly related to the deceased Dubbanna.
Narasimhulu was away from his house at that time.
Further, if A 1 to A 8 had companye determined to wipe out an entire family companysisting of father and two sons, it is unlikely they would have spared P.W. 1 and allowed her to escape with injuries Nos.
The Village Munsif did number find either the basket or the companylected stubs alleged to have been left by P.W. 1 at the place where her husband and sons were murdered.
and Venkataramudu also witnessed the occurrence.
But A 4 struck P.W. 1 with the sickle causing an injury on her left palm and also hit her with the handle portion of the sickle on the left arm.
About 2 years before these murders Sugreevudu one of the sons of A 1 was murdered at the toddy shop of P.W. 4, Mukkidi Naganna was prosecuted under Section 302, Indian Penal Code for that murder.
P 1 and deputed some elderly persons to keep a watch over the dead bodies at the place of occurrence.
The State appeal against respondents 1 and 4 therefore, has abated.
P.W. 10 testified that the cut wounds found on the deceased persons.
Regarding Argument vii The learned Judges of the High Court have said that injury No.
On reaching the village she informed P.W. 3 about the occurrence when the latter asked her as to how she had sustained the bleeding injury on her left hand.
herein, was a prosecution witness in that case.
P 1 and Ext.
P.W. 1 was also sent for medical examination.
The High Court has number discussed the evidence of P.W. 3 at length.
The assailants then went away shouting that he had escaped death.
The Police Sub Inspector P.W. 13 reached the spot at about 6 a.m. and prepared the inquest reports Exts.
P.W. 1 was companylecting the uprooted stubs in a basket.
1 on P.W. 1 companyld be caused with a sharp edged weapon.
When she had gone a short distance, she saw A 1 to A 3, armed with Yerika Sickles, companying from the direction of Kanakaveedu village.
He seized blood stained sari and blouse of P.W. 1 under Memo Ext.
P 1 was received at the Police Station, Yemmiganur at 1 a.m. , when on its basis, the case was registered.
P.W. 2, Boya Jaggapuram Hanumanna.
All the accused gave an indiscriminate beating to the two sons and killed them at the spot.
Peddiah alias Dubbanna deceased in the present case was looking after the defence of Mukkidi Naganna and as a result of his influence one prosecution witness in that case turned hostile.
Since the murder of Sugreevudu, A 1 had been living in village Divamdinne.
A suggestion that the injuries on her were fabricated with the help of Narasimhulu, was put to P.W. 1 in cross examination but was sharply denied and emphatically rebuffed.
At the same time, A 4 to A 8 and two other strangers also armed with sickels and battle axes approached the deceased persons.
F. W. 1 then rushed to the village while the assailants were still active on the scene.
In the afternoon, P.W. 1 with a basket full of the uprooted stubs started to go home.
He however, did number think it safe to rely on the evidence of P.W. 2.
At about 7.30 p.m. , P.W. 6 despatched the report, Ext.
By our order, the appeal against respondents 2 and 6, who are reported to be absconding, was separated, and the appeal against respondents 3, 5, 7 and 8, only is number being heard.
Peddiah started running a Guntaka pulled by bullocks, while the sons engaged themselves in putting mud on the bunds.
Thirdly, the learned Judges of the High Court were labouring under a mistake of fact, if in this argument they intended to companyvey that it was she who had stated that when she returned to the scene of occurrence with the Village Munsif, the dead bodies of her sons were lying at a distance of one furlong from that of her husband.
On reaching Adoni by sunrise, he delivered the sealed companyer meant for the Magistrate to the Magistrate.
By the time the accused came up to her house, P.W. 1 bad already informed her about this occurrence.
It had thus been proved that there was numberundue delay in making the report or in registering the F.I.R. in the Police Station.
The injuries found on P.W. 1 were according to the Doctor, of about 24 to 36 hours duration.
P.W. 3 replied that she did number know the whereabouts of her husband.
He also examined P. Ws.
The dead bodies were despatched under the care of companystables P.W. 7 to P.W. 9 to the medical officer with a requisition for postmortem examination.
The deaths of the deceased had, in the opinion of the Doctor, occurred about 24 hours to 48 hours prior to the post mortem examination.
P 1 , and his numbere P 2 to the Police Station and to the Magistrate respectively, through the Talari, P.W. 11 .
He delivered that sealed companyer at the Police Station.
He then performed post mortem examination of Peddiah alias Dubbanna and found 17 injuries on his body.
They enquired of him about his sons, proclaiming that they had just exterminated Dubbanna and his two sons and would finish his sons, also.
He also performed the autopsy of Pedda Pullanna and found 10 injuries on his body.
He also companyvicted all the 8 accused under Section 148, and A 4 under 324, Indian Penal Code for causing hurt to P.W. 1.
P 1 which had been lodged without undue delay, companyld safely be acted upon to companyvict all the eight accured.
Shortly thereafter, all the assailants, including A 1 to A 8, similarly armed came to the house of Narasimhulu, brandishing their bloodstained weapons, and enquired from P.W. 3 in abusive language regarding the whereabouts of her husband.
1 and 2 in order to create evidence against themselves.
No question or suggestion was put to P.W. 10 in cross examination that the cut wound found on P.W. 1 companyld number have been caused with the sharp edged blade of a sickle or that it was self suffered.
P.W. 6 then, in the presence of those persons, visited the scene of murders and numbered the various injuries on the dead bodies on the reverse side of the companyplaint Ext.
The High Court accepted the appeal of the accused and acquitted all of them.
P 1 , visited the scene of occurrence did number find any Guntika and bullocks in the field which according to P.W. 1 was being ploughed by her husband.
The Medical Officer P.W. 10 examined P.W. 1 on July 23, 1970 at 5.10 a.m. and found one cut wound on her left palm and an abrasion on the upper left arm.
P 3 to P 5 regarding the deceased, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the presence of P, W. 6 and another.
On July 24, 1970 at 8.45 a.m., P.W. 10 companyducted autopsy of Chinna Pullanna and found as many as 15 injuries on his body.
On July 22, 1970 at about 2.30 p.m., the deceased Peddiah alias Dubbanna, his sons, the other two deceased, and his wife P.W. 1 went to their field called Cheruvu Chenu in the revenue estate of village Kanakaveedu.
He then slept at the Police Station and early in the morning went by bus via Hyderabad to Adoni.
The accused then similarly armed proceeded to the house of P.W. 4, who was then sitting on the pial of his house.
1 was caused with sic blade of the Erikala Sickle and injury No.
The trial Judge found that the evidence of P.W. 1 was fully reliable, and that her testimony, companyroborated by the F.I.R. Ext.
We have heard Shri O. P. Rana, learned Counsel for the appellant State, and Shri S. R. Srivastava who has appeared as amicus curiae for respondents 3, 5, 7 and 8.
P.W. 1 did number mention in the F.I.R. Ext.
In the opinion of P.W. 10, the cut wounds found on the dead bodies companyld be caused with any sharp edged weapon, like a sickle with long blade, and similarly, the cut wound No.
On account of this the present accused were nursing a grudge against the deceased.
Eight persons who will hereinafter be referred to as A 1 to A 8, were put on trial for the murder of Peddiah alias Dubbanna and his two sons, Chinna Pullana and Pedda Pullanna.
1 found by the Medical Officer P. W, 10 on the left palm of P.W. 1 was a nicely cut wound and companyld number have been caused with an, Erikala Sickle.
S. Sarkaria, J. This appeal by special leave is directed against a judgment, dated September 29, 1971 of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh.
Shortly after the departure of the assailants, Narasimhulu returned home.
P.W. 4 told them that his sons were number at his house.
v a After the attack on her husband and two sons, she went to P.W. 3s house, waited there for one hour and after the arrival of her relation, Nara simhulu, she went to report to the village Munsif.
This they did addressing PW in foul and abusive language.
Although P.W. 10 said he had number seen an Erikala Sickle, he testified that the cleancut wounds found on the body of Pedda Pullma deceased would have been caused by a sharp edged weapon like a sickle with a long blade.
Or, the accused might have moved their bodies further and left them at the places where they were found by the Village Munsif and the investigating officer.
Hence this appeal by the State, During the pendency of this appeal, respondent 1 A 1 and respondent 4 A4 , who had been enlarged on bail, were murdered.
Most of the injuries found on the deceased persons were cut wounds and a few were linear abrasions.
After abusing P.W. 4 filthily the accused went away towards the house of Eramma, P.W. 5, and enquired regarding the whereabouts of her husband.
When she left the scene of occurrence, it is her case, her two sons lay dead about 15 yards away from the body of her husband, but when the Village Munsif came to the scene of occurrence, the dead bodies of her two deceased sons were lying at a distance of one furlong from of their father.
She told them that her husband had gone away to another village.
P.W. 1 in an attempt to save her eldest son, approached the assailants with her hands raised, entreating them to spare her son.
P.W. 1 accompanied by Narasimhulu, went to the house of the village Munsif, P .W. 6, at about 2.30 p.m. The Munsif recorded her statement Ext.
and injury No.
1, 3, 4 and 5 during the inquests.
The report Ext.
Venkataramudu, an other alleged eye witness, was number examined by the prosecution.
P.W. 3 is the wife of one Narasimhulu who was the nephew of deceased, Dubbanna.
All these 10 persons companyverged on Peddiah and started assaulting him with their weapons.
