P.D/1.
We shall, however, give a brief resume of the prosecution case which resulted in the murder of Gurbux Singh resulting from lust and greed on the part of the appellant and Smt.
As the deceased appeared to be a very serious obstacle in the illicit relations of Surjit Kaur and Maghar Singh, the two accused after taking Baldev Singh approver P.W. 11 into companyfidence planned the murder of the deceased Gurbux Singh.
This apparently satisfied Sarwan Singh and he went back to his house.
This abnormal companyduct of Surjit Kaur as also the presence of blood in the companyrt yard aroused his suspicion and he at once went to the house of Bachan Singh P.W. 4.
Surjit Kaur and Maghar Singh entered with a kirpan Ext.
In the morning Sarwan Singh again returned to the house of the deceased to enquire about the welfare of his brother, but Surjit Kaur gave incoherent answers and tried to avoid the questions.
According to the prosecution Smt.
Animated with this object, Maghar Singh knocked at the door of the house of the deceased at 10 p.m. when the deceased was sitting in his house.
Surjit Kaur.
After the usual investigation a charge sheet was submitted against the appellant and Surjit Kaur which resulted in the companymitment inquiry and in the ultimate companyviction and sentence by the Sessions Judge as indicated above.
The F. I.R. was lodged on June 15, 1972 at 9.00 A.M., the blood stained Kirpan was also recovered at the instance of the accused Maghar Singh and the blood was found to be human blood, The matter did number rest here, but even blood stained clothes were found from the person of the accused which also companytained human blood.
Surjit Kaur.
P 5 Surjit Kaur caught the deceased by his long hair while the approver Baldev Singh caught his legs.
Maghar Singh gave several Kirpan blows in quick succession on the neck and other parts of his body causing as many as 17 injuries out of which injuries Nos.
The deceased raised an alarm on receiving the first blow which attracted Sarwan Singh, P.W. 3, the brother of the deceased, to the house, but as he got numberresponse from the inmates of the house he climbed the roof of the house and found Surjit Kaur and Maghar Singh sitting on one company in the companyrt yard.
The Police Officer started the investigation in the companyrse of which blood stained Salwar of Surjit Kaur was recovered at the time of her arrest as also the blood stained earth was taken from the place of occurrence.
On June 16, 1972, Maghar Singh, realizing that there was numberway out came to the house of Kartar Singh Sarpanch where Jit Singh Lambardar was also present, and companyfessed his guilt and then was produced before the Inspector who arrested him.
He enquired from Surjit Kaur as to what had happened but she explained away that the deceased had some fits and she was looking after him.
The door was opened by Smt.
The approver Baldev Singh, P.W. 11, washer pichhlagu son off spying from the first husband .
Sarwan Singh then proceeded to the police station but he was informed at the bus stop that the Inspector Gurchetin Singh was present in the village.
Surjit Kaur was immediately arrested.
So he met the Investigating Officer in the bank building and lodged the F.I.R. Ext.
Surjit Kaur was living with the deceased Gurbux Singh for about 9/10 years as his wife.
Surjit Kaur eloped with the appellant about 6/7 months before the occurrence but returned to her husband Guibux Singh after an attempt was made by him to bring her home 9/10 days before the occurrence, the occurrence having taken place on June 14, 1972 at 10 p.m. in village Kotduna, Tehsil and District Barnala.
Surjit Kaur.
Even after the return of Surjit Kaur, Maghar Singh companytinued to visit the house of the deceased and companytinued his intimacy with Surjit Kaur which was strongly resented by the deceased.
The immediate cause for the murder of the deceased was provided by the fact that the deceased Gurbux Singh had made a will in favour of the pichhlagu son Baldev Singh and Surjit Kaur thought that lest the deceased might change his mind it is better to finish him off and grab the entire property for her son.
Apart from this circumstantial evidence which companyclusively companynects the two accused with the murder of the deceased, namely, recovery of the weapon of offence, the false explanation given by Surjit Kaur, the recovery of the clothes from the person of the accused, there is another important circumstance which almost clinches the issue and companypletes the link in the chain of circumstantial evidence and this is that the Kirpan recovered from the possession of the appellant Maghar Singh companytained blades of hair of the deceased struck to it and on scientific examination the blades were found to be identical with the hair of the deceased.
The central evidence in this case companysists of the testimony of the approver Baldev Singh, P.W. 11 who has given a full narrative of the manner in which the deceased was hacked to death by Maghar Singh, with the aid of the approver and Smt.
Murtaza Fazal Ali, J. This is an appeal by Maghar Singh by Special leave against the order of the High Court Dated February 12, 1974 companyfirming the companyviction and sentence of death against Maghar Singh and sentence of life imprisonment on Sint.
2, 8, 5, 8 and 15 as mentioned by Dr. M. S. Caplash P.W. 1 were incised wounds and were sufficient to cause the death of the deceased.
What appeared to be a happy married life for quite a few years appears to have been subsequently disrupted by the entry of Maghar Singh accused who started clandesting visits to the house of the deceased 3/4 years before the occurrence and developed illicit intimacy with Smt.
The Panch of the village and narrated the entire story to the Panch as also to Bhajan Singh Lambardar.
On inquiry by Bachan Singh, P.W. 4, Surjit Kaur made an extra judicial companyfession and admitted that she and Maghar Singh had murdered the deceased because they found him a great obstacle in their illicit relationship.
When these persons reached the spot, Maghar Singh slipped out of the house and Surjit Kaur had sent away her son Baldev Singh to the village of his father in law.
