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3.2 While so, it is alleged that Kamala (A6) exhorted the others to hack Usharani, pursuant to which, Baskar (A1), Elangovan (A2) and Ramesh (A3) attacked Usharani. When her husband (Pandurangan- P.W.2) and son (Mahendran-P.W.1) rushed to her rescue, they were prevented by Ramachandran (A4) and Raju (A5). Usharani was hacked to death at the place of occurrence by Baskar (A1), Elangovan (A2) http://www.judis.nic.in and Ramesh (A3) and Ramachandran (A4) and Raju (A5) attacked Mahendran (P.W.1) and Pandurangan (P.W.2) and caused injuries to them.
7 Mahendran (P.W.1) has stated in his evidence that after the Surveyor and the Village Administrative Officer left, Ramachandran (A4) and Raju (A5), sons of Elangovan (A2), started laying the boundary stones without cutting the portia tree; on seeing this, his (P.W.1's) mother Usharani objected to it; at that time, Kamala (A6), the mother of Ramachandran (A4) and Raju (A5) and the wife of http://www.judis.nic.in Elangovan (A2), abused Usharani and exhorted her sons to attack her (Usharani), pursuant to which, Baskar (A1) and his brother Ramesh (A3) who are the owners of the adjacent property and against whom, their (P.W.1's family) have been waging a litigation, joined the fray; Baskar (A1) and Ramesh (A3) brought a billhook each from their house and saying “Why should the tree be removed just because this woman says?”, came to attack his (P.W.1's) mother Usharani; Elangovan (A2) said that only if that lady (Usharani) is got rid of, everything will be alright; then, he took a billhook that was already lying there and attacked Usharani on her right cheek; when Usharani tried to defend the attack, she sustained injuries in her left hand and cheek; Ramesh (A3) hacked her on her back; Baskar (A1) hacked her on her left neck; when he (P.W.1) and his father Pandurangan (P.W.2) were rushing to the rescue of Usharani, Raju (A5) held him (P.W.1) and Ramachandran (A4) held his father Pandurangan (P.W.2) and restrained them; Raju (A5) attacked him (P.W.1) with a billhook and he (P.W.1) sustained injuries on his left shoulder, left leg, right leg and head; Ramachandran (A4) hacked his father Pandurangan (P.W.2) with a billhook on his head, nose and fore arm; thereafter, all the accused fled and his mother (Usharani) was lying dead; so, 108 ambulance was called and they were taken to the hospital; while he was at the http://www.judis.nic.in hospital, the police came there and recorded his statement. The statement given by him was marked as Ex.P.1. He identified the blood- stained shirt and lungi (M.O.1 series) that were worn by him and the blood-stained lungi (M.O.2) that was worn by his father Pandurangan (P.W.2). He also identified the billhook (M.O.3) used by Baskar (A1), billhook (M.O.4) used by Ramachandran (A4), billhook (M.O.5) used by Ramesh (A3), billhook (M.O.6) used by Elangovan (A2), crowbar (M.O.
8 Pandurangan (P.W.2), the father of Mahendran (P.W.1) and the husband of Usharani, has stated in his evidence that Baskar (A1) and Ramesh (A3) are living behind his house; Elangovan (A2) is living in the eastern side of his house; he (P.W.2) had boundary disputes with the accused; on 20.02.2015, the Surveyor and the Village Administrative Officer came to the place of occurrence for measuring Elangovan's (A2's) land; after measuring, they directed http://www.judis.nic.in Elangovan (A2) to remove the portia tree on the boundary and thereafter, lay the boundary stones; however, after they left, the sons of Elangovan (A2), viz., Ramachandran (A4) and Raju (A5), tied the measuring thread and started laying the boundary stones; at that time, his wife (P.W.2's wife) Usharani objected saying that they should first remove the portia tree and then only, lay the boundary stones in that place, for which, Kamala (A6), the wife of Elangovan (A2), abused Usharani and asked her sons to attack her (Usharani); at her instance, Baskar (A1) and Ramesh (A3), who also had boundary disputes with him (P.W.2), jumped into the fray armed with billhooks by saying “Why should the tree be felled at the instance of these people” and rushed towards his (P.W.2's) wife; at that time, Elangovan (A2) hacked Usharani on her right cheek with a billhook; Ramesh (A3) cut her on her back with a billhook; Baskar (A1) attacked her with a billhook; when he (P.W. 2) went to prevent the attack, Ramachandran (A4) and his brother Raju (A5) prevented him and his son (P.W.1) from going to the rescue of Usharani and they also started attacking them with billhooks; Usharani died on the spot; thereafter, all the accused ran away as the incident was witnessed by his neighbours Kannan, Prabhu (P.W.3), Vignesh (P.W.4) and Mathi (P.W.5); he (P.W.
12 Similarly, all the witnesses have uniformly stated that Ramesh (A3) hacked Usharani with a billhook on her back, whereas, in the evidence of Dr. Saranya Devi (P.W.22) and in the postmortem certificate (Ex.P.29) issued by her, there is absolutely no reference to any injury on the backside of Usharani. In fact, Dr. Saranya Devi (P.W.22) has been specifically asked in the cross-examination as to whether she noticed any other injury on Usharani's body apart from the four injuries in her body, for which, she has answered in the negative. When an unlawful assembly mounts a physical attack, it is not necessary for the eyewitnesses to say with precision, as to who all attacked and where they attacked. Had the five eyewitnesses not stated specifically about the attack by Ramesh (A3), things could be viewed differently. But, when they have all uniformly deposed that Ramesh (A3) used a billhook to hack Usharani on her back and when no injury on her back has been noted at the time of postmortem, then, a conflict between ocular evidence and medical evidence arises. It is http://www.judis.nic.in always open to the Court to accept the ocular testimony if it is in variance with the medical evidence under certain circumstances. However, in the instant case, when five witnesses have deposed that Ramesh (A3) hacked Usharani on her back with a billhook, but, when there is no injury on her back, then, their testimony on this aspect becomes suspect. If a billhook had been used by Ramesh (A3) to hack Usharani on her back, definitely, there would have been an injury on her back. In this regard, the Trial Court has given the following reasoning which does not cut much ice with this Court: