LexSTATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH versus GANGULA SATYA MURTHY
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A STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH v. GANGULA SA TY A MURTHY NOVEMBER 19, 1996 B [DR. A.S. ANAND AND K.T. THOMAS, JJ.] Indian Penal Code, 1860-Sections 302, 376-Rape and murder- Fnrcihle sexual intercourse-Inference can be drarvn fron1 circun1stances and medical evidence-The act of throttling indicating vehement resistance by the victim-Extra judicial confession of the accused-Conviction by C Trial Court-High Court reversed and acquitted the accused holding death was possible due to consumption of poison and victim was habituated to sexual intercourse-On appeal, High Court's finding reversed-Held, Court should deal with rape cases with utmost sensitivity-Minor discrepancies should not be made the basis to throw out allegations of rape-Should not D cast stigma on the character of the deceased Evidence Act, 1872-Sections 24, 25 and 26-Extra Judicial confession made by the accused to the witnesses before he was produced to the po/ice-Subsequently such confession reduced to writing inside the police station-Such extra Judicial Confession is not hit by Section 26. Section-26-Conjession made during custodial surveillance, is inadmissible-The mere fact that the extrajudicial E confession was later put to block and white inside the police station can not make it inadmissible. According to the prosecution, the deceased, a girl of sixteen years of age, went to the house of the accused at about 5.30 PM on 26.11.91. There was nobody in the house except the accused. He forcibly F subjected her to sexual intercourse and throttled her to death. Post Mortem revealed fresh vaginal tears in the inner vaginal walls and fracture -0f the hyoid bone with bleeding injuries on the neck. The accused made extra-judicial confession before PW 6 and PW 7 and showed them a letter written by the deceased warning the accused G not to have leering attitude towards her. They produced him before the police on 2.12.91 alongwith the letter. The trial court convicted the accused under sections 302 and 376 IPC and sentenced him to imprisonment for life for murder and seven years for rape. The trail court relied on the extra judicial confession and the circumstantial evidence established by the prosecution that the deceased was seen H entering the house of the accused at about 5.30 PM, the accused was 808 STATE OF AP. v. G.S. MURTHY 809 seen going out at about 6 PM, death occured between 6 PM to I 0 A PM, at the relevant time there was nobody in the house except the victim and the accused, and the dead body was found on a cot inside the house of the accused. The High Court reversed the conviction and acquitted the accused holding that possibility of death due to consumption of poison could not be ruled out, and also entertained the doubt that the injuries on the neck could have been post mortem. B It also did not rely on the extra judicial confession. The State appealed against acquittal. Allowing the appeal, this Court HELD: I.I. The High Court erred substantially in upsetting the conviction and sentence passed by the Sessions Judge supported hy sound and sturdy reasons. 1818 Fl C 1.2. The High Court has chosen to advance fragile reasons to upset a well-reasoned conclusion reached by the trial court that the deceased was throttled to death. The mere fact that witnesses present in the inquest had escaped noticing the small abrasions on the neck of D the dead body is too tenuous a ground for holding that such abrasions could have come into existence after the inquest was held overruling the definite opinion of the Doctor who saw the injuries and opined that they were ante-mortem. It is totally incorrect to say that no abrasion could be caused if pressure is applied with fingers. If fingers have projecting nails, pressure application with such fingers would quite E possibly cause abrasion as well. The finding of the High Court that no bleeding was noticed at the side of the fracture of the hyoid bone, is contrary to the finding of the Doctor (PW 10). 1814 G,H, 815 A,B] 2. The Doctor after considering the Chemical examination report of viscera comprising of stomach contents, intestine, piece of level and F kidney pronounced his final opinion that death was due to asphyxia as no poison was detected. The chemical report is on record and section 293 of the Criminal Procedure Code would enable the court to use the said document in evidence. The finding of the High Court that death could be caused due
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