The Madhya Pradesh High Court modified a murder conviction to culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The case revolved around a domestic dispute that tragically ended with a woman’s death. The division bench comprising Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Prem Narayan Singh observed that the husband, Kishan, assaulted his wife during a heated argument but lacked the intent to kill.
The incident occurred on May 24, 2019, at around 8:00 PM. Kishan allegedly demanded money from his wife. When she refused, he physically assaulted her in front of their 17-year-old son. Despite the son's attempt to intervene, the violence continued. A relative, Bhoon Singh, also tried to stop Kishan but was attacked with a brick. Kishan then locked his son inside a room. The next morning, the boy’s maternal aunt arrived and found the woman dead with a head injury.
The police investigation led to the recovery of blood-stained items and a brick, later confirmed through forensic testing to have human blood. A charge sheet was filed under Section 342 and Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code. During the trial, however, most of the key witnesses, including family members, turned hostile, complicating the prosecution’s case.
The prosecution, represented by Deputy Advocate General Shrey Raj Saxena, argued that the act was deliberate and supported by medical evidence. The post-mortem conducted by Dr. Rizwan Qureshi confirmed a fatal head injury caused by a hard and blunt object, leading to substantial blood loss.
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Kishan's counsel, Advocate Manohar Singh Chouhan, argued that the act occurred in a sudden fit of rage during a domestic dispute and lacked premeditation. He urged the court to consider Section 304 Part II of IPC instead of Section 302, citing absence of intent.
“Brick has been pelted on head of deceased with full force in a heated moment. Thus, in committing so, the appellant was certainly having the knowledge of death, but not the intention,” the court stated.
The court highlighted the hostile testimony of the son and other relatives, who refrained from attributing direct blame. The lack of eyewitnesses and the spontaneous nature of the incident indicated the absence of pre-planned murder.
“The altercation appeared to have escalated in the heat of the moment. There was no premeditation or clear intent to kill,” the bench observed.
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Referring to several precedents, including Hussainbhai Asgarali Lokhandwala v. State of Gujarat and K. Ravi Kumar v. State of Karnataka, the court emphasized that a single fatal injury in a sudden domestic quarrel points to culpable homicide rather than murder.
The bench concluded that Kishan’s act, while grave, did not amount to murder under Section 302 IPC. Instead, it fell under Section 304 Part II IPC, which deals with acts done with knowledge of likely fatal outcome but without intention to cause death.
As a result, the life sentence imposed by the trial court was reduced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment with a fine of ₹5,000. The judgment also instructed the trial court to release the appellant if he had already served the revised sentence and was not required in any other case.
Case Title: Kishan v. State of Madhya Pradesh, Criminal Appeal No. 9269 of 2023