Case Note & Summary
The applicant, Ashok Pundalik Gavade, was convicted under Section 302 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for the murder of Gurunath, a waiter in a hotel at Chandgad. The incident occurred on 5 February 2014 when the deceased was serving the applicant and his friend, and some water spilled on the table, leading to an altercation. The applicant allegedly threatened the deceased, and later, when the deceased was proceeding to the police station to lodge a complaint, the applicant took a bamboo stick from his car, followed him, and inflicted a blow on his head. The deceased succumbed to the injuries on 8 February 2014. The post-mortem report revealed a fracture of the right parietal bone extending across the right temporal bone and into the right side middle cranial fossa, with laceration of the membrane beneath the fractures and subdural and subarachnoid hemorrhage. The learned Sessions Judge held the applicant guilty of murder. The applicant filed a bail application (Bail Application No.1563/2015) which was not pressed and dismissed with liberty to file a fresh application. A second bail application (Criminal Bail Application No.489/2016) was dismissed on merits on 20 April 2016. The applicant then filed a third application for suspension of sentence and release on bail pending appeal. The applicant's counsel argued that there were contradictions and omissions in the evidence of the first informant and that the conviction under Section 302 IPC was not justified as the applicant had inflicted only a single blow without premeditation. The court, however, noted that the nature of the injury was sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death, and that repeated bail applications on the same grounds without change in circumstances are not maintainable. The court dismissed the application.
Headnote
A) Criminal Procedure - Bail - Suspension of Sentence - Repeated Applications - The applicant, convicted under Section 302 IPC, filed a third application for suspension of sentence and bail pending appeal. The court held that repeated bail applications on the same grounds without change in circumstances are not maintainable. The earlier applications were dismissed on merits, and no new grounds were urged. (Paras 1-6) B) Indian Penal Code - Murder - Single Blow - Section 302 IPC - The court observed that the nature of the injury, a fracture of the right parietal bone extending across the right temporal bone with subdural and subarachnoid hemorrhage, was sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death. Hence, the conviction under Section 302 IPC was justified despite the single blow. (Paras 2-4)
Issue of Consideration
Whether the applicant is entitled to suspension of sentence and release on bail pending appeal, particularly when two earlier bail applications have been dismissed and no new grounds have been raised.
Final Decision
The application is dismissed.
Law Points
- Repeated bail applications on same grounds not maintainable
- Single blow can constitute murder under Section 302 IPC if injury is sufficient in ordinary course of nature to cause death
- Suspension of sentence pending appeal requires exceptional circumstances
