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1. The above appeal is by the State, and it is filed against the acquittal of the respondents, who were arrayed as A-1 to A-3 to take their trial before the learned Sessions Judge, Dindigul, for an offence of murder, on an allegation that the three respondents, who in the judgment will be referred to as A-1 to A-3, shared a common intention with each other, and in furtherance of the common intention, A-3 pushed the deceased Bhakkiam out of the house, A-1 poured kerosene over her body, and A-2 threw a lighted match stick, leading to burn injuries, and as a result of the said burn injuries, she died at 12.30 p.m. on 11.10.1992 at the Government Hospital, Palani, where she was taken for treatment.

2. The trial Judge, though framed a charge against A-1 and A-3 under Sec. 302 read with 34 I.P.C., framed a charge against A-2 under Sec. 302 I.P.C. and also framed two charges against A-3 under Sec. 201 I.P.C. as well as under Sec. 218 I.P.C. He acquitted all the accused of all the charges, and aggrieved by the said order of acquittal, the State has preferred the above appeal.

3. The case of the prosecution can be briefly summarised as follows:

A-1 is the father of A-2 and A-3, and A-3 was working as Inspector of Police, Civil Supplies C.I.D., at Thanjavur, on the relevant date. P.W. 6 is the daughter of the deceased Bhakkiam, and P.W. 2 is the son-in-law of the sister of the deceased. P.W. 8 is the cousin of the deceased. The deceased was residing with P.W. 6 at Periakalayam Puthur, and she was working in the house and garden land of A-1. An illicit intimacy developed between her and one Basheer, the son of A-1. On coming to know about this, the husband of the deceased Oocha Thevar divorced her. Thereafter, the deceased continued her relationship with A-1. The deceased was living in a house, given to her by A-1. The deceased asked A-1 about 3 days prior to the date of incident, to take steps to see that she is settled in life. P.W. 8, who was present, also supported the deceased. The first accused pacified her by telling her that he will take up the matter with his son A-3, when he comes to the village. On 10.10.1992, A-1 went to the house of P.W. 1, the Thalayari of Periakalayam Puthur, and informed him that the deceased has immolated and was lying in front of his house with burn injuries. He requested P.W. 1 to go with him, and accordingly, P.W. 1 went along with A-1. This was at 3.30 a.m. P.W. 1 saw the deceased sitting near the steps leading to the first floor, and when questioned, she informed him that A-3 pushed her by neck, and A-1 poured kerosene on her, and A-2 set fire to her. She requested P.W. 1 to take her to the hospital. P.W. 1 took her to the Government Hospital at Palani. In the meantime, P.Ws. 2 and 8 also reached the place, and they helped P.W. 1 to secure a Taxi, in which the injured Bhakkiam was placed and taken to the hospital by P.W. 1. A-2 was present at that time. She was produced before P.W. 16, the Medical Officer, attached to the Government Hospital, Palani, at 5.30 a.m. on 11.10.1992. He found burn injuries, which he noted in the copy of the accident register Ex.P. 17. When the Doctor asked as to the cause of burns, he was informed that kerosene was poured on her, and a lighted match stick was thrown at her, by known persons at Kattuthottam Street of Periyakalayamputhur. P.W. 16 sent an intimation to the police and also sent a requisition to the Magistrate, requesting him to go over to the Hospital for the purpose of recording the statement of the injured Bhakkiam.

16. Now, we will take up Ex.P. 25, the statement, alleged to have been given by the injured Bhakkiam to the Judicial Magistrate P.W. 20. According to P.W. 20, the Judicial Magistrate, Palani, the statement was recorded between 6.40 a.m. and 6.45 a.m., and it was attested by P.W. 16, the Medical Officer. A perusal of Exs.P21 and P25 shows that the deceased had no consistent version, when she gave the above two statements. In Ex.P. 21, she has stated that kerosene was poured by A-1, after she was pushed out of the house by A-3; and that the second accused threw a lighted match stick at her. The deceased Bhakkiam in her statement Ex.P. 25, given to the Magistrate, did not whisper a word about the part played by A-2, and her only statement as per Ex.P. 25, is that A-1 and A-3 poured kerosene and set fire. A-2, who was attributed with an overt act of throwing a lighted match stick at her in her earlier statement Ex.P. 21, was totally exonerated by her in the statement Ex.P. 25 given by her to the Magistrate. She also did not implicate A-2, when she allegedly made an oral statement to P.W. 1.

20. It is the case of the prosecution that A-3 created records as if he has seized kerosene from P.W. 13, who was in possession of the commodity in violation of the Kerosene Control Order; and that the said seizure was at 4.00 a.m. on 11.10.92. According to the prosecution, A-3 created Ex.P. 8, the First Information Report, registered in Crime No. 225/92 relating to the said incident. We will now consider whether the prosecution has succeeded in establishing that the documents prepared by the Officer A-3, were genuine or were created by him with a view to screen himself from the offence. P.W. 10, a Police Constable, attached to the Civil Supplies C.I.D., Thanjavur, who was present at the time of seizure, admitted that when he was examined by the Inspector, Crime Branch C.I.D., he did not inform him that A-3 has prepared a false case. Though P.W. 10 admits that he was examined on 13.10.92 by P.W. 26 along with a Police Constable Panneerselvam and the Driver of the police vehicle Rajendran; and that they gave all details regarding the occurrence in Crime No. 225/92, P.W. 26 denied having recorded the statement of P.W. 10 and otheRs. The statement of P.W. 10 was also not sent to the trial Court. The case of the defence is that since the statement of P.W. 10, which was recorded by P.W. 26, was not in favour of the prosecution, it was suppressed and was not sent to the trial Court.