Indian Kanoon - Search engine for Indian Law

1. The accused Rakhi Mandal has been charged under Sections 302/381/411 IPC with the offence of having committed theft and of murdering Smt Archana Grover in whose house she was working as maid servant.

2. The case of the prosecution as contained in the charge sheet, is that on 16/05/2007 at about 1.25 PM information was received through PCR at the police station that one woman was locked inside her house at J-8, 3rd floor, Saket, Delhi and somebody was pelting stones from outside. The said information was recorded vide DD No. 11 and Head Constable Vijay Pal along with Deepak Tiwari went to the scene of incident. In the meanwhile State Vs Rakhi Mandal; S.C. No. 01/12 FIR No. 519/07; PS Malviya Nagar U/s 302/381 IPC page no. 1 of 31 SI Aishvir Singh Incharge, Police Post Saket and other police officers also reached, where they found one lady Archana Grover wife of Pankaj Rakesh lying unconscious in the bathroom and her son Keshav Adhayaya, daughter Jahnvi. Neighbnour Sandeep and others present. It was learnt on enquiry that maid servant accused Rakhi Mandal was missing from the house. Archana Grover was taken to Max Hospital where she was declared dead. An FIR No. 519/07 was registered and the investigations were taken over by Insp/SHO Pankaj Singh who inspected the scene of the crime and recorded the statements of Keshav Adhyaya, Somnath Grover father of the deceased and Aurbindo Grover brother of the deceased under Section 161 CrPC. Keshav Adhyaya stated that he had seen his mother last with the maid servant at around 10.30 am and after about five minute Rakhi Mandal had left from house along with her bags. The police thereafter under took the search for the accused Rakhi Mandal who was finally traced in her house in West Bengal where Budeshwar Mandal was also found present who had got Rakhi Mandal employed in the house of the deceased. Accused Rakhi Mandal was apprehended at the instance of Budheshwar and was arrested. She made disclosure statement that she had given sleeping pills in tea to the deceased and thereafter strangulated her and had left the house after locking the room from outside. She was brought back to State Vs Rakhi Mandal; S.C. No. 01/12 FIR No. 519/07; PS Malviya Nagar U/s 302/381 IPC page no. 2 of 31 Delhi. The strip of pills and the keys were got recovered by her from the bushes near the house of the deceased with which she had locked the room. She also got recovered the glass in which she had given the tea laced with pills to the deceased in the morning on 16/5/07. The articles were seized and the samples were sent to FSL for examination.

- 18 -

servant. On 16/5/07 at about 1.20 pm Keshav and his sister Janhvi called her and they found Archana Grover lying in the bathroom and the maid servant Rakhi Mandal, the accused was found missing. Keshav further told her that the maid servant was present in the house till about 9.30 am.

51. The most significant facts which emerged from the testimony of PW 20 is that in the morning of the incident ie 16/5/07, the accused Rakhi Mandal was present in the house alongwith the deceased and her children. His testimony further shows that at about 10 am some drink had been served to the deceased who apparently was looking dizzy. It is also brought forth that accused and the deceased were in the bathroom and her mother had screamed his name. When he had gone to check he was not able to see his mother as door was found locked. Thereafter, at around 12 noon he again checked for his mother and found the door locked. On entering the room by breaking the glass pannel, he saw his mother lying unconscious in the bathroom and accused missing. This implies that accused was present in the house till about 10.30 am which time the murder had taken place. There was no other person present in the house at that time except two children aged 07 years and 10 years and the maid servant/accused.

56. It may be also be relevant to refer here the testimony of PW 26Budeshwar Mandal who had got the accused employed in the house of the deceased.It is deposed by him that he was residing in the area of Savitri Nagar and was working as hawker and thereafter taken up a job in placement agency engaged the business of supplying maid servants in the houses.In the month of March-2007 he had gone to his native village MaliGiri North 24 Pargana,West Bengal and after2-3 days had gone to village Dukhi NakaraTaula of accused Rakhi Mandal who told him that she had worked in Chattarpur but could not get enough money and was looking for a job.She accompanied him to Delhi. On coming to Delhi he met his niece Sapna who was working as maid servant in State Vs Rakhi Mandal; S.C. No. 01/12 FIR No. 519/07; PS Malviya Nagar U/s 302/381 IPC page no. 21 of 31

- 22 -

B Block, Panchsheel Park. He also met mother of deceased who told him that she needed a maid servant for the house. He got the accused kept in the house of Archana Grover as a maid servant on a monthly salary of Rs. 2500/-. On 18/5/07 when he was in his village he received a telephonic message on his mobile phone that accused Rakhi Mandal had run away from the house of deceased along with some money. He tried to get in touch in case on her mobile but got no response. He then tried to call on the mobile phone of the deceased which was attended by accused Rakhi Mandal and after saying hello, she disconnected the mobile. Then, on the same day he went to the village of accused Rakhi Mandal but she was not present there. He requested his maternal uncle to keep vigilance at her home. On 19/5/07 while he was present with the local police officers as well as officers from Delhi Police he received call from his maternal uncle Samun Mandal that Rakhi Mandal had reached their house. They all immediately went to apprehend the accused and she was arrested vide memo Ex PW26/A. She got recovered the strolly bag, ladies hand bag, mobile phone, some clothes, cards and other articles which were kept in the hand bag which she had stolen from the house of the deceased which were seized by the police vide memo Ex PW26/C. The ladies bag contained cash of Rs. 1000/- , some coins, ATM cards, bunch of keys and gold jewellery.