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P. Raghuram, Chairman of the Karnataka Bank at the Mangalore Head office about the murder of the Actg.Manager and the theft of Rs.13,97,900 from the strong room. FAC |
PW 43 Dr. Cecilia Cyril, Associate Professor, Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical College, Madras performed an autopsy on the dead body of the deceased. FAC |
She found that the deceased had been strangulated by a dark colour twisted towel 36x7 c.m. long with knot which completely encircled his neck near the thyroid 715 cartilage. FAC |
She found several external injuries. FAC |
Underneath the towel there was a faint ligature mark 32x5 c.m. over the front side and back of the neck. FAC |
Apart from this, there were also several lacerations, bruises and abrasions on the upper part of the body, particularly on the face and the neck as also on both the hands. FAC |
The doctor also found two stitchers measuring 14 c.m. in length thrust into both sides of the neck in the front. FAC |
One of the stitchers had been thrust 5 c.m. deep and got stuck in the cartilage and the other was embedded 11 c.m. deep. FAC |
On dissection, she found extensive bruising of tissues over both sides of thyroid cartilage 7x5x1/4 c.m. FAC |
as also on the front of trachea 7x3x1/2 c.m. FAC |
According to the Doctor, each of injuries nos. 1, 2 and 3 was by itself sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death. FAC |
She further opined that the cumulative effect of some of the injuries viz. nos. FAC |
1 3, 4 10 and 17 was necessarily fatal. FAC |
She stated that the blood marks on the walls of the toilet as well as on the floor could be due to sprouting and spillage of blood. FAC |
In her opinion, death was not caused by strangulation alone. FAC |
For quite a while, the police drew a blank. FAC |
At about 6 p.m. PW 47 Anandam, Inspector of Police accompanied by PW 46, Sub Inspector returned to the Bank and started making inquiries in the neighbourhood. FAC |
During the course of the inquiry he traced out one Ganesan, a plumber by profession, who used to sleep on the pavement near the Bank. FAC |
He furnished a valuable clue which ultimately led to the detection of the murderer. FAC |
He revealed that Smt.Kanaka, a flower vendor belonging to village Tharamani, whose husband Neerappan was employed as a cook at the nearby Krishna Bhawan Hotel on Errabalu Chetty Street, might disclose information about the murderer, if she were to be interrogated. FAC |
On getting this vital information PW 47 went to village Tharamani but found the house of Smt.Kanaka locked. FAC |
On enquiry he learnt that she had gone to the house of her sister at Vyasarpadi. FAC |
PW 47 obviously did not realise the importance of this witness. FAC |
He states that he did not go to Vyasarpadi that night although the place was only 7 kilo metres from the Police Station as it was very late. FAC |
Nor did he personally go to the nearby Krishna Bhawan Hotel, which was only two furlongs away, and instead sent a Sub Inspector to fetch Neerappan, husband of PW 18, but he was not there. FAC |
On the next morning i.e. the 22nd, under the orders of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, the case was transferred to the Crime Branch and 716 investigation was taken over by PW 48 Guruvandi, Inspector of Police (Crimes), M 1 Post Trust Police Station, without further progress. FAC |
He states that he had been to Tharamani in search of Smt.Kanaka but she was not there and learnt from the neighbours that she had gone to her sister 's house at Vyasarpadi but since her place at Vyasarpadi was not known, he did not proceed to Vyasarpadi and instead left a message that on her return she should report to... |
He admits that he did not go himself to Krishna Bhawan Hotel but sent a Police Constable but he could not find Neerappan. FAC |
On the 23rd morning at 10 a.m. PW 50 Deviasigamani, Inspector of Police (Crimes), B2 Police Station who had taken over investigation in that morning, went to the Bank and further examined PW 2 Mallaiya, PW 3 P.T. Rajan and PW 12 Balasubramaniam, as also the nearby shopowners. FAC |
He then went to village Tharamani in search of PW 18 Smt.Kanaka but till then she had not returned from her sister 's house at Vyasarpadi. FAC |
He left a message that she should report to the Police Station on her return. FAC |
On that day he had also inspected all the relevant records including the attendance register and detected that apart from two others, the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty did not report for duty after the 23rd. FAC |
He accordingly went to the Christian Home where the accused was staying in Room No. 4 but found the room locked. FAC |
It was revealed that the main gate of the hostel used to be closed at 10.30 p.m. and till then the accused had not returned. FAC |
On the 21st morning at about 5 a.m. PW 27 saw the accused going up the stairs to his room. FAC |
After his bath he came down for breakfast but did not take any food complaining of stomach disorder and left after a cup of milk. FAC |
On the 24th at 11 a.m. PW 50 again went to the Bank and examined some of the Bank employees, namely, PW 5 Rangarajan, PW 6 Smt.Shasikala and PW 9 Govindaraj. FAC |
On that day at 4 p.m. he left for Vyasarpadi and remained there till 11 p.m. moving about in different localities making an extensive search in an effort to trace out Smt.Kanaka, but this was of no avail. FAC |
On the 25th he went to the Bank at 10 a.m. and further examined PW 16 Chandrasekara Holla and also recorded the statement of PW 17 Smt.Saraswathi Somasundar, an officer of the Bank. FAC |
At 4 p.m. PW 50 left for Tharamani where he found PW 18 Smt.Kanaka at her 717 house and recorded her statement which revealed the actual involvement of the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty in the commission of the murder and robbery; till then PW 50 treated him as a prime suspect. FAC |
After the disclosure by PW 18 Smt.Kanaka that she had seen the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty coming out of the Bank premises on the night in question after 9 p.m., locking the premises and of his suspicious movements thereafter, PW 50 directed all his energies in tracking down the accused. FAC |
He along with PW 49 Selvaraj, Inspector of Police and a police party left in the early hours of 26th morning at 1 a.m . by a police jeep for Mangalore in search of the accused. FAC |
They reached Mangalore at 9.30 p.m. FAC |
At 11.30 p.m. PW 50 called on the Deputy Superintendent of Police and requested for help of the local police. FAC |
With the local police headed by PW 40 Sundar Shetty, Sub Inspector of Police, State Intelligence, PW 50 raided the house of appellant No. 2 Shivaram Shetty at Kodial Bail. FAC |
Appellant No. 2 and his wife were present in the house but the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty was not there, he having in the meanwhile left for Madras by the West Coast Express. FAC |
The police carried on intensive search of the house till about 2 a.m. but nothing incriminating was found. FAC |
When they questioned appellant No. 2 he did not disclose that his son had already left for Madras by train. FAC |
As a result of this, the Madras police throughout on the 27th searched for the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty at Mangalore and neighbouring places but could not trace him out. FAC |
On the 27th night at about 9 p.m. PW 50 along with the police party left for Madras and reached there in the early hours of 29th morning at 1 a.m. At 7.30 p.m. PW 50 along with PW 49 and the police party went to the Aerodrome, Egmore Railway Station and the Madras Central in search of the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty. FAC |
At the Madras Central, PW 50 received information at about 1.45 p.m. that the accused was seen moving about in My Lady 's Park. FAC |
He accordingly with the police party rushed to the Park where he arrested the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty and recovered from his person currency notes in bundles of Rs.5 denomination marked MOs Nos. 198 and 199 bearing the Bank seals. FAC |
On the 30th morning at 7.15 a.m. PW 50 accompanied by the accused visited the Hotel Chola Sheraton but except for the receptionist the other witnesses were not present. FAC |
Apparently during investigation PW 50 derived information from the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty that the money stolen from the Bank was kept in his house at Mangalore. FAC |
At about 9.30 a.m. he accordingly went to the Madras Central presum 718 ably because he thought that appellant No. 2 Shivaram Shetty would be arriving by train but he could not be traced there. FAC |
At 2 a.m. he obtained police remand of the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty. FAC |
At 4.30 a.m. PW 50 along with PW 49 and the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty together with the police party left in a policy jeep for Mangalore. FAC |
However, on the way while the jeep was near the Madras Central, the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty pointed out his father Shivaram Shetty coming in a cycle rickshaw from the opposite direction. FAC |
PW 50 asked the rickshaw puller to stop and took appellant No. 2 Shivaram Shetty into custody. FAC |
Appellant No. 2 was carrying three boxes. FAC |
The police party returned to the Flower Bazar Police Station where the boxes were opened. FAC |
Of them, two of the boxes marked MOs 176 and 177 contained bundles of currency notes bearing the seal of the Bank totalling Rs.12,27,500 and the same were seized. FAC |
The case presents a feature which is rather disturbing and gave rise to a prolonged argument lasting over several days. FAC |
The Indian Express, Mangalore edition and the two regional newspapers Malai Murasu and Makkal Kural, both published from Madras bearing the date line 29th May and the regional paper Dina Thanthi, also published from Madras of the 30th, carried a news item that the entire amount stolen from the Bank had been recovered f... |
A similar news item appeared in the regional newspaper Dina Thanthi on the 30th. FAC |
If the news item published was true it would falsify the entire prosecution case about the alleged recoveries at Madras. FAC |
There is however nothing on record to substantiate the story appearing in the newspapers. FAC |
On the 30th, late M.G. Ramachandran, the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, at a public function felicitated PW 18 Smt.Kanaka, the flower vendor, for the exemplary courage shown by her in coming forward to help the police in furnishing the vital clue in solving the crime and presented her with a cash reward of Rs.5,000... |
The Hindu published from Madras in all its editions of 31st carried a news item about the function and reported that the Chief Minister used the occasion to caution the newspapers against the danger of conjectural reporting of such crimes during investigation, based on rumours unrelated to facts, which would not only p... |
He said that rumours were bound to sidetrack and mislead the public and even police officers concerned in solving the crime. FAC |
After the 719 function the Police Commissioner is reported to have told newsmen that the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty had been taken into custody on Sunday afternoon i.e. the 29th and had confessed that the cash removed from the strong room had been secreted out to Mangalore where his father lived. FAC |
He informed that a police party was already there and the father Shivaram Shetty was likely to be nabbed anytime. FAC |
In the meanwhile, the family of the appellants suffered a great tragedy. FAC |
On the 30th Smt. FAC |
Madhavi, wife of appellant No. 2, employed as a School Teacher at Mangalore and his daughter Kumari Usha Rani, an employee of the State Bank of Mysore, Hassan Branch out of the sheer shame could not bear the humiliation and committed suicide by walking into the Arabian Sea. FAC |
The Indian Express and the Hindu of the 31st carried the news of their suicide and it was reported that their bodies were washed ashore on the Someswar Ullal Beach on the outskirts of Mangalore. FAC |
The appellants abjured their guilt and denied the commission of the alleged offences. FAC |
When the accused were questioned about the facts and circumstances appearing against them, they denied their complicity in the crime. FAC |
Appellant No. 1 asserted that he had left for Mangalore on the 22nd as he was feeling unwell. FAC |
When he called upon PW 10, Chairman of the Bank, who enquired as to why he had come to Mangalore, he told him of his ailment. FAC |
On his advice he left for Madras to resume his duties. FAC |
His version is that on the 27th afternoon when the West Coast Express by which he was travelling, arrived at the platform at the Madras Central, he saw members of the staff of the Bank, namely, PW 9 Govindaraj, Padmanabhan and Ramesh. FAC |
When he went near them he was tapped on his shoulder by a stranger who asked him whether he was Laxmi Raj Shetty. FAC |
On his giving an affirmative answer he asked him to accompany him. FAC |
On his query he disclosed that he was a police officer. FAC |
By that time the other members of the staff had stopped him and they advised him to accompany the police. FAC |
Appellant No. 2 states that he had on 26th met the Chairman of the Bank and informed that his son had come to Mangalore and the Chairman wanted to speak to him. FAC |
He accordingly went with his son who enquired about his ailment and then directed him to proceed to Madras. FAC |
He admitted that there was a search made of his house on the night between 26th and 27th at Mangalore but the police did not find 720 anything. FAC |
His version is that on the next day i.e. 27th at about 9 p.m. PW 50 accompanied by the Assistant Commissioner of Police Sitaram and PW 10 and Thalithiya, Assistant General Manager visited his house and told him that his son had been arrested and they wanted him to go with them to Madras. FAC |
He was advised by PW 10 to accompany the police and he was first taken to the Chairman 's house and from there to the Blue Star Hotel at Mangalore. FAC |
Early next morning all of them left for Madras and reached the Flower Bazar Police Station the same evening at 6 p.m. where he was detained for the subsequent days and nights till he was produced before the Court along with his son on the 31st. FAC |
The learned Sessions Judge has relied upon the testimony of PW 18, Smt.Kanaka, the flower vendor and the other prosecution witnesses and come to the conclusion that the circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt is to be drawn have been fully established against both the accused and all the facts so established a... |
He accordingly convicted the accused with the commission of the offences with which they were charged and sentenced them as above. FAC |
Ratnavel Pandian, J. speaking from himself and Singaravelu, J. constituting the Division Bench, in a singularly well written judgment, has carefully marshalled the entire circumstantial evidence and come to the conclusion that the prosecution has established its case against both the accused beyond all reasonable doubt... |
The prosecution case against the appellants rests purely on circumstantial evidence. FAC |
The circumstances relied upon by the prosecution against the principal accused for the charges of murder androbbery which were parts of the same transaction are: FAC |
(i) The fact that the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty was seen leaving the building on the fateful night at about 9 p.m. as testified by PW 18 Smt.Kanaka, the flower vendor, sitting on the steps of the Bank after finishing her day 's work and the fact that the deceased was not seen alive thereafter. FAC |
The accused had gained knowledge about the mode of operating the strong room in the first week of April 1983 when he entered the strong room along with PW 8 Ananthakrishnan, PW 9 Govindaraj and PW 12 P. Balasubramaniam and got his doubts cleared about the method of opening the strong vault where there were Godrej burea... |
The murder and robbery were obviously an inside job by a person who had knowledge about the 721 manner in which access could be had to the safety vault. FAC |
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