Ravishankar Shukla S/o Kanhaiya Shukla Aged About 32 Years R/o Vill. Jara, P.S v. State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Station House Officer
Case Details
1 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 AMARDEEP CHOUBEY Digitally signed by AMARDEEP CHOUBEY Date: 2025.07.30 14:27:31 +0530 2025:CGHC:36588-DB NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR CRA No. 331 of 2024 Ravishankar Shukla S/o Kanhaiya Shukla Aged About 32 Years R/o Vill. Jara, P.S. - Palari, Distt - Baloda Bazar-Bhatapara, Chhattisgarh. --- Appellant versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Station House Officer (Sho), P.S. - Palari, Distt - Baloda Bazar-Bhatapara, Chhattisgarh. --- Respondent CRA No. 395 of 2024 1 - Durgesh Verma S/o Samaru Verma Aged About 22 Years R/o Gatapar P.S. - Pallari, District - Baloda-Bazar-Bhatapara, Chhattisgarh. 2 - Nemichand @ Choti Dhruv S/o Ganesh Dhurv Aged About 20 Years R/o Gatapar P.S. - Pallari, District - Baloda-Bazar-Bhatapara, Chhattisgarh. ---Appellants Versus State of Chhattisgarh Through - S.H.O., Pallari, District - Baloda-Bazar- Bhatapara, Chhattisgarh. ... Respondent ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For Respective Appellants : Mr. Palaash Jha and Mr. Hemant Gupta Advocates. For Respondent-State : Mr. Sangharsh Pandey, G.A. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice Hon'ble Shri Bibhu Datta Guru, Judge Judgment on Board Per Bibhu Datta Guru, Judge 28.07.2025 1. Since both the appeals arising out of same sessions trial, therefore, they are being considered and decided by this common judgment. 2. These criminal appeals filed by the appellants-accused under Section 374(2) of Cr.P.C. is directed against the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 03/01/2024, passed by the learned 1st Additional Sessions Judge, Baloda Bazar (C.G.) in Sessions Case No. 57/2020, whereby the appellants-accused have been convicted and sentenced as under:- Conviction Sentence Under Section 302/34 of the IPC Life imprisonment (thrice) and fine of Rs.1000/- each, in default, additional R.I. for 1 year each. Under Section 201/34 of the IPC R.I. for 7 years and fine of Rs.1000/- each, in default, additional R.I. for 1 year each Under Section 120B of the IPC R.I. for 7 years and fine of in default, Rs.1000/- each, additional R.I. for 1 year each All the sentences are directed to run concurrently. 3 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 3. (A) In the present case, allegation against the appellants i.e. Ravishankar Shukla (A-1), Durgesh Verma (A-2) and Nemichand (A-3) is that, they have attacked Yashwant Sahu (YS); his wife Maheshwari Sahu (MS); and his son Devendra Sahu (DS), by means of axe, due to which, they suffered injuries and died. (B) Further case of the prosecution is that the complainant- Jitendra Sahu (PW-1), younger brother of YS went to the police station Palari along with Sukhdas (PW-12) and informed that on 11/04/2020, after taking dinner at 9 p.m., they went for sleep in their room. During the intervening night, at 4 a.m., his niece namely; Poonam Sahu (PW-6), daughter of YS, woke up for nature’s call and told him that that someone had killed her parents and brother by hitting them with a sharp weapon. Then complainant Jitendra Sahu went to the spot and saw, his brother YS was lying dead on the bed in his room, there was a wound on the forehead, his nephew DS was lying dead on the bed and his sister-in-law MS was also lying dead on the shade in front of the room. On the basis of information, the police registered merg intimation vide Exs.P-1, P-2 and P-3. Spot map was prepared
Facts
vide Ex.P-18. Subsequently, FIR was registered against unknown person vide Ex.P-4. Dead-body of deceased were sent for postmortem examination, which was conducted by Doctor-PW- 19, and submitted its report vide Ex.P-12, P-13 and P-14. (B) During the investigation, Dansai Sahu PW-2, father of YS 4 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 stated that A-1 came to his house about two months ago and called his grandson DS, but his grandson did not go to meet him and expressed fear of murder on him. Thereafter on this basis, A-1 taken into custody on 13.04.2020 at about 10.00 a.m. and recorded his memorandum statement Ex.P. 22, from which it was revealed that he had been a love affair with the deceased MS and the said fact came to the knowledge of YS (husband of MS) in the last 5-6 months. Thereafter, YS and DS (son of YS & MS) objected A-1 and also stopped contacting the deceased MS with him. (C) On 11/04/2020, A-1 went to his friend’s house i.e. A-2 in the afternoon and both of them went for a walk where A-1 told A-2 about his love affair with MS and made a plan to kill her husband and son. Then, in the intervening night of 11th & 12th April, 2020, A-1 and A-2 left from their respective houses with tangia, on the way, both of them met with A-3, who is friend of A-2. Thereafter, all the appellants reached near the house of deceased on motorcycle and stopped A-3 near the motorcycle, for surveillance. Thereafter, A-1 and A-2 entered the house of deceased, where they murdered YS and DS one by one and when MS woke up on hearing the voice, subsequently, they murdered her too by means of tangia. (D) On the basis of memorandum statement of A-1, the other co- accused persons A-2 and A-3 were taken into custody and their 5 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 memorandum statements were recorded vide Ex.P/26 & Ex.P/29. The involvement of the accused in the incident was found and on the basis of memorandum statement of A-1, tangia used in the crime was seized from the pond vide Ex.P-23 and one of his burnt plastic shoes which was said to have been burnt was seized vide Ex.P-24 and his clothes, motorcycle and mobile were seized vide Ex.P-25. On the basis of the memorandum statement of accused A-2, a tangia used in the crime was seized vide Ex.P-27. All the seized articles were sent for chemical examination to FSL. The appellants were arrested vide Ex.P-32 to 34. After completing the investigation, the final report was prepared. 4. The prosecution in order to prove its case examined as many as 20 witnesses and exhibited 63 documents. Statement of the appellants under Section 313 of Cr.P.C. was recorded wherein they have pleaded their innocence and false implication in the matter. 5. The learned trial Court after appreciating the oral and documentary evidence available on record proceeded to convict the appellants herein for the aforementioned offence and sentenced them as mentioned herein-above against which these appeals have been preferred by the appellants-accused herein questioning the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence. 6. Learned counsel for the appellants would submit that the 6 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 appellants have been falsely implicated in the present case. They would submit that the statements of all the prosecution witnesses are full of contradiction and omissions, hence, no implicit reliance could be placed on such kind of testimony. The testimony of prosecution witnesses could not be relied upon in the facts and
Legal Reasoning
It may be noted here that this Court indicated that the circumstances concerned ‘must or should’ and not ‘may be’ established. There is not only a grammatical but a legal distinction between ‘may be proved’ and ‘must be or should be proved’ as was held by this Court in Shivaji Sahebrao Bobade Vs. State of Maharashtra, (1973) 2 SCC 793 : (AIR 1973 SC 2622) where the following observations were made: ‘certainly, it is a primary principle that the accused must be and not merely may be guilty before a Court can convict and the mental distance between ‘may be’ and must be’ is long and divides vague conjectures from sure conclusions.’ (2) the facts so established should be consistent only with the hypothesis 16 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 of the guilt of the accused, that is to say, they should not be explainable on any other hypothesis except that the accused is guilty. (3) the circumstances should be of a conclusive nature and tendency. (4) they should exclude every possible hypothesis except the one to be proved, and (5) there must be a chain of evidence so complete as not to leave any reasonable ground for the conclusion consistent with the innocence of the accused and must show that in all human probability the act must have been done by the accused.” 19. In Nathiya Vs. State represented by Inspector of Police, Bagayam Police Station, Vellore, (2016) 10 SCC 298, the Supreme Court has reiterated the above principles. 20. After careful appreciation of the evidence on record, forensic reports, recovery of weapons, motive and common intention, this Court finds that the prosecution has successfully established the guilt of the accused persons beyond reasonable doubt and the chain is fully complete to connect the accused with the present crime, the finding recorded by the learned trial Court that the appellants have assaulted the deceased persons with a common intention to kill them, and as a result of injuries caused by the 17 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 appellants by means of axe, deceased are died. We hereby affirm the finding recorded by the learned trial Court that the appellants- accused are the author of the crime in question. 21. The chain of circumstantial and direct evidence is complete and points unerringly toward the involvement of the appellants in committing the heinous and cold-blooded murders of three innocent victims. Such acts not only destroy families but also shake the very conscience of society. Accordingly, the appellants deserve no leniency and must face the full force of law to ensure justice is served and public confidence in the justice system is upheld. The conviction and sentence as awarded by the learned trial court to the appellants is hereby upheld. 22. Accordingly, both the present criminal appeals lack merit and are hereby dismissed. 23. The appellants are stated to be in jail and they shall serve out the remaining period of jail sentence as awarded to them by the learned trial Court. Registry is directed to send a copy of this judgment to the concerned Superintendent of Jail where the appellants are undergoing the jail sentence to serve the same on the appellants informing them that they are at liberty to assail the present judgment passed by this Court by preferring an appeal before the Hon'ble Supreme Court with the assistance of High Court Legal Services Committee or the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee. 18 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 24. Let a certified copy of this judgment along with the original record be transmitted forthwith to the trial Court for information and necessary action. SD/- SD/- (Bibhu Datta Guru) Judge Chief Judge (Ramesh Sinha) Gowri/Amardeep
Arguments
circumstances of the present case. Learned counsel for the A-3 would submit that nothing has been seized from A-3 and he is not present inside the house of the deceased; and only on the basis of memorandum statement of A-1, he has been implicated in the present case. Moreover, the prosecution has failed to prove the necessary ingredients of the offences beyond all reasonable doubt against the appellants. Hence, looking to the entire evidence adduced by the prosecution, the alleged offence is not made out against the appellants and they have been falsely implicated in the present case. As such, the criminal appeal deserves to be allowed and the impugned judgment deserves to be set aside. 7. Per-contra, learned State counsel supported the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence and submits that the prosecution has proved the offence beyond reasonable doubt by leading evidence of clinching nature. He would submit that the allegation against the accused/appellants is that they committed triple murder and unnatural death of deceased have been proved by the Dr. B.S. Dhruv (PW-19) in its reports (Exs.P/12, P/13 & 7 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 P/14). He would further submit that the Investigating Officer, Pramod Singh (PW-20) recorded memorandum statement of A-1 (Ex.P/22) and at his instance weapon of offence i.e. tangiya (axe) has been seized vide (Ex.P/23). Memorandum statement of A-2 (Ex.P/26) has been recorded and at his instance also weapon of offence i.e. tangiya (axe) has been seized (Ex.P/27) and memorandum statement of A-3 (Ex.P/29) has been recorded and at his instance blood stains shirt has been seized vide (Ex.P/30). Therefore, there is ample evidence on record to connect the accused/appellants with commission of the offences. The findings arrived at by the learned trial Court is just and proper. 8. We have heard learned counsel for the parties, considered their rival submissions made herein-above and went through the records with utmost circumspection. 9. The first and foremost question is as to whether the death of the deceased was homicidal in nature, which the learned trial Court has recorded in affirmative by taking into consideration the oral and documentary evidence available on record and particularly considering the postmortem reports (Exs.P-12 to 14) which is duly proved by the evidence of Dr. B.S. Dhruv (PW-19). Accordingly, taking into consideration the postmortem reports (Exs.P-12 to 14) and the statement of Dr. B.S. Dhruv (PW-19) that the death of deceased caused by complications of hemorrhagic shock, due to excessive blood loss, as result of injury of vital organ, mode of 8 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 death Asphyxia and nature of death of deceased were homicidal in nature, we are of the considered opinion that the learned trial Court is absolutely justified in holding that the death of the deceased were homicidal in nature, as the same is correct finding of fact based on evidence and same is neither perverse nor contrary to the record. Accordingly, we hereby affirmed the said finding. 10. Now the next question would be whether the accused- appellants herein are the author of the crime in question ? Evidence adduced by the prosecution witnesses : 11. PW-1, Jitendra Sahu, younger brother of YS, stated in his evidence that he knows A-1 before the incident and he also knows A-2 and A-3 from the date of incident. During the intervening night of 11th & 12th April, 2020, his niece Poonam Sahu PW-6 knocked the door of his room. When he woke up, she was crying and told him that someone had attacked her mother, father and brother with a sharp edged weapon. Thereafter, he reached the spot and saw that his Bhabhi MS was lying dead, then he went to his brother’s room and saw that YS and DS were also lying dead. After that he called other family members and told them about the incident. Thereafter, he called Kotwar Sukhdas and both of them went to police station and informed about the incident. In para 7 of his cross-examination, he stated that in the month of February 2020, his elder brother YS had told him that the village priest A-1 used to 9 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 visit his house in his absence and used to talk to his sister-in-law i.e. MS for a long time. He has further stated that, YS does not like the habits of A-1. Therefore, he had forbidden him from visiting his house, but still A-1 used to visit his house. One day A-1 came to village along with Manoj Beldar carrying a sickle and was calling his nephew DS, but DS did not go and came home out of fear. Ghanshyam and Hiralal, friends of DS, told that A-1 and Manoj Beldar were calling DS to kill him. They were carrying sickles. He further stated that MS was facing troubled by A-1. 12. PW-6 Poonam Sahu, daughter of deceased YS & MS and sister of DS, stated in her evidence that on the date of incident, after taking dinner, all the family members were gone to sleep in their respective rooms. Her father YS and brother DS were sleeping together in their room and her mother MS was sleeping in another room. In the old house in which her mother, father and her brother had gone to sleep, her grandfather Dansai Sahu was sleeping below. After the courtyard, in a new house, she was sleeping along with her grandmother and cousin. At around 11.30 pm, she heard a woman screaming loudly, then she came to the courtyard to see where the sound was coming from. Thereafter, she told her grandmother that she heard a woman screaming loudly. Her cousin also told that she also heard a woman screaming. Then she along with her grandmother went to the courtyard of the house to go to the bathroom, there she tried to listen, but she could not hear any 10 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 sound nearby. Then she came and slept with grandmother. Around 4 a.m. in the morning, her grandfather woke up her grandmother and told her how MS was lying down in the shade. Thereafter, Poonam woke up and went to old house where her mother, father and her brother had gone to sleep and saw that her mother MS was lying on the ground, she had a wound on her back and was covered in blood. Later, she went to her father's room to tell him, however, her father YS and her younger brother DS were also lying covered in blood. Thereafter, she woke up her uncle and aunt and told them. She was fully convinced that her mother MS, father YS and brother DS were murdered by accused A-1. 13. PW-2 Dansai Sahu, father of deceased YS, stated in his evidence that on the date of incident i.e. 11/04/2020, he drunk milk at 08.30 pm and went to sleep on the terrace. There are old house and the new house. His elder son YS, daughter-in-law MS and grandson DS and he slept in the old house; his younger son, his wife and his two granddaughters slept in the new house. He stated that he woke up at 4:00 a.m. morning and came downstairs. The light of the shade was off and turned on the light. Then he saw that MS was lying down and blood was spread there. Then, when he called his son YS, there was no response from there. Then he thought that he is sleeping. Then he called his wife. Thereafter, his wife and granddaughter woke up and saw that MS was lying dead. After that, they went to room of YS and turned on the light, they saw that 11 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 YS was lying down and he had been hit with a weapon due to which, blood was flowing. His grandson DS was also lying down and blood was scattered there. He further stated that before two months of the incident, Hiralal and Ghanshyam, friends of DS, had told him that A-1 and another person came from Jara village to kill his grandson DS. 14. PW-19, Dr. B.S. Dhruv, who conducted the postmortem on the bodies of three deceased persons, found the following injuries:- Injuries sustained by deceased YS:- 1. A 6x8 cm cut injury mark was present on the frontal part of the head and the bone at the same place was broken. 2. There was a 3x2 cm cut injury on the lower jaw of the deceased and the jaw was broken. 3. A 4x2 cm cut injury was present on the right side of the chest of the deceased. There was bleeding in the brain. Chest, diaphragm, ribs, soft tissue, right one and two ribs were broken and collar bone was broken. Lung was congested. Larynx and trachea were normal. Right and left lung was congested. Perion, peristalsis was congested. Heart chamber was empty. Blood was collected in large vessels. Injuries sustained by deceased MS:- 1. A 7x3.5 cm cut injury was present on the back. Right scapula was broken. 2. A cut injury measuring 11x4 cms was present in right temporal and bone was fractured at the same location. 12 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 3. 5x4 cms. cut injury was present on left side of neck in which left side neck muscle, cervical vertebra and neck blood vessel were cut. There was internal and external bleeding in the brain. The thorax, diaphragm, ribs, fourth and fifth ribs of right side of soft tissue were fractured. Lung was congested. Larynx and trachea were normal. Right and left lung were congested. Perion, peristalsis were congested. Heart chamber was empty. Blood was collected in large vessels. Injuries sustained by deceased DS:- 1. 6X3 cm cut injury was present on the right side of the head. 2. 4X3 cm cut was present on the right side of the head. 3. 3X2 cm cut injury was present in the occipital part of the head. 4. 4 x 2 cm cut injury was present on the back of the head. All the injuries sustained by the deceased were of serious nature and there was fracture of bones at the place of injury. There was internal and external bleeding in the brain. Chest, membrane, ribs, soft tissue were normal. Lung was congested. Larynx and trachea were normal. Right and left lung were congested. Perion, peristalsis were congested. Heart chamber was empty. Blood was collected in large vessels Common Intention : 15. From bare perusal of memorandum statement of A-1, that he is a priest in the village of deceased, and used to come to the house of deceased, where he started liking the deceased MS, and when this fact came to know YS, who is husband of MS, then YS, has 13 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 forbidden MS to meet with A-1 and made her understood that A-1 is not a good person. Thereafter, A-1 met with A-2 and told that he likes MS and is not able to meet her, as her husband YS and son DS have already know the fact that he liked MS and also made restriction, therefore, they made a plan to eliminate YS and DS. When on the date of incident, both of them were going on the motorcycle to the house of deceased, on the way, they met with A- 3, who is a friend of A-2 and he also become an accused of the crime in question. After reaching the spot, A-3 was standing outside the house near motorcycle for surveillance and A-1 and A-2 went inside the house and first killed YS, then DS and when MS woke up, they also killed MS. Hence, it is proved that there is a common intention to kill the deceased. Recovery of incriminating material : 16. After committing the murder of deceased, A-1 threw the Tangia (weapon used in crime) in the pond, and burnt his plastic shoes. A- 2, also committing the murder of deceased by hitting them with a tangia and thereafter, hid the tangia in his bore body; blood stains shirt of A-3 has been seized. Both the above tangia, were seized on the basis of memorandum statement of A-1 and A-2. The said seized Tangias were sent to chemical examination to FSL and in FSL report vide Ex.P/63, blood stains were found in tangia i.e. article-Q, used in crime, which was seized on the basis of memorandum statement of A-1; and also in clothes of the 14 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 deceased and appellants. Analysis: 17. Considering the statements of Poonam Sahu PW-6, daughter of YS, Jitendra Sahu PW-1, younger brother of YS, it is manifest that A-1 used to come to the house of deceased persons and sit for long time and used to talk with MS and because of which, YS advised MS not to meet A-1, as he is not a good person. From the statement of Dansai PW-2, who is grandfather of DS that before two months of the incident, Hiralal and Ghanshyam, friends of DS, had told him that A-1 and another person came from Jara village to kill his grandson DS and particularly considering the injuries sustained by the deceased, which were caused by the A-1 and A-2 by means of Tangia and from the FSL report, blood stains was found on Tangia, which was seized from the pond, on the basis of memorandum statement of A-1. A-3, who was standing outside the house near motorcycle for surveillance at the time when A-1 and A- 2 went inside the house for committing murder of deceased; after the incident, A-3 did not tell anyone about the incident, which makes it clear that he was also involved in the crime along with A-1 and A-2. It is proved that there is a common intention to kill the deceased, hence, the appellants herein are the perpetrators of the crime in question. 18. The principle as to when an accused can be convicted on the basis of circumstantial evidence has been propounded by the 15 CRA Nos.331/2024 and 395/2024 Supreme Court in the celebrated case of Sharad Birdhichand Sarda vs. State of Maharashtra, (1984) 4 SCC 116, wherein it has underlined the conditions, which must be fulfilled for convicting an accused on the basis of circumstantial evidence and held in para- 153 as under: “153. A close analysis of this decision would show that the following conditions must be fulfilled before a case against an accused can be said to be fully established : (1) the circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt is to be drawn should be fully established.