# LAXMI RAJ SHETTY AND ANR v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

- **Citation:** [1988] 3 S.C.R. 706
- **Court:** Supreme Court of India
- **Decided:** 1988-04-26
- **Case number:** Criminal F Appeal No. 36 of 1987
- **Bench:** A.P. Sen, L.M. Sharma
- **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/laxmi-raj-shetty-and-anr-v-state-of-tamil-nadu-9941
- **Pages:** 32

## Headnote

Indian Penal Code, 1860-Challenging convictions and sentences under sections 302, 392 and 449 and under sections 212 and
411 of-Based on circumstantial evidence.
Appellant No. 1, Laxmi Raj Shetty, was convicted and sentenced to death under section 302, Indian Penal Code, by the First
Additional Sessions Judge, Madras. for committing the murder of
deceased P.N. Gnanasambandam, Acting Manager of the Karnataka
Bank, Madras. He was further convicted under s. 392 for having
D committed robbery from the strong room of the Bank, and also
under s. 449 for having committed house trespass with intent to
commit the said robbery and murder, and was sentenced to undergo
rigorous imprisonment for seven years on each of these courts, the
sentences being directed to merge in the sentence of death.
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Appellant No. 2 Shivram Shelly, father of the appellant No. 1,
was convicted by the Additional Sessions Judge under s. 212 and s.
411, I.P.C., and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for three years
on both counts.
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The Sessions Judge had relied upon the testimony of PW 18,
Smt. Kanaka and other prosecution witnesses and had come to the
conclusion that the circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt
was to be drawn had been fully established against both the accused
and all the facts so established were consistent only with the
hypothesis of their guilt and excluded every reasonable possihflity of
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their innocence.
According to the prosecution, the accused Laxmi Raj Shelly, a
trainee-clerk in the Bank, and the deceased Gnanasambandam used
to work. in the bank after the normal working hours and leave the
H bank premises together at night around 9 or 9.30 p.m. On the fateful
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU
707
night, the deceased was working in the Bank after the normal banking honrs. At about 7 .30 p.m. the appeliant No. I (accused) came to
the bank premises, as he used to work late in the evenings and help
:the decea•ed. Some time after 7 .30 p.m. the deceased went to the
toilet where he was strnck on the head by the assailant with a stitcher
as a result whereof he slumped. Thereafter he was strangulated with
a towel and also stabbed to death by a pair of stitchers. At about 9
p.m. the accused was seen coming out of the building by PW 18,
Smt. Kanaka. The accused closed the outer door of the Bank and was
seen by PW 18 going. He returned with a s_uitcase, re-entered the
Bank premises, and came out with a bag, suitcase and a brief case,
.and after placing the suitcase on the steps went inside again and
came out with a large coffee coloured skybag. He then got an autorickshaw from the Burma Bazar and disappeared into the night in
the auto-rikshaw.
On a reference by the Additional Sessions Judge, the High
Court confirmed the convictions and sentences of both the appellants. The appellants then appealed to this Court for relief by this
appeal.
Dismissing the appeal with a modification, directing that the
sentence of death passed on appellant No. I be converted into one of
life imprisonment, the Court,
HELD: The prosecution case against the appellants rested
purely on circumstantial evidence. The law relating to the proof of
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a case based purely on circumstantial evidence has been settled hy
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several authorities of this Court as well as the High Courts. [724F-G I
In cases where the evidence is of a circumstantial nature, the
circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt is to be drawn
should in the first instance be fully established, and all the facts so
established should be consistent only with the hypothesis of the guilt
of the accused. Again, the circumstances should be of a conclusive
nature and tendency and they should be such as to exclude every
hypothesis but the one proposed to be proved. There must be a chain
of evidence so far complete as not to leave any reasonable ground for
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a conclusion consistent with the innocence of the accused and it must
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708
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1988] 3 S.C

## Text

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LAXMI RAJ SHETTY AND ANR.
v.
STATE OF TAMIL NADU
APRIL 26, 1988
[A.P. SEN AND L.M. SHARMA, JJ.J
Indian Penal Code, 1860-Challenging convictions and sentences under sections 302, 392 and 449 and under sections 212 and
411 of-Based on circumstantial evidence.
Appellant No. 1, Laxmi Raj Shetty, was convicted and sentenced to death under section 302, Indian Penal Code, by the First
Additional Sessions Judge, Madras. for committing the murder of
deceased P.N. Gnanasambandam, Acting Manager of the Karnataka
Bank, Madras. He was further convicted under s. 392 for having
D committed robbery from the strong room of the Bank, and also
under s. 449 for having committed house trespass with intent to
commit the said robbery and murder, and was sentenced to undergo
rigorous imprisonment for seven years on each of these courts, the
sentences being directed to merge in the sentence of death.
E
Appellant No. 2 Shivram Shelly, father of the appellant No. 1,
was convicted by the Additional Sessions Judge under s. 212 and s.
411, I.P.C., and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for three years
on both counts.
F
The Sessions Judge had relied upon the testimony of PW 18,
Smt. Kanaka and other prosecution witnesses and had come to the
conclusion that the circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt
was to be drawn had been fully established against both the accused
and all the facts so established were consistent only with the
hypothesis of their guilt and excluded every reasonable possihflity of
G
their innocence.
According to the prosecution, the accused Laxmi Raj Shelly, a
trainee-clerk in the Bank, and the deceased Gnanasambandam used
to work. in the bank after the normal working hours and leave the
H bank premises together at night around 9 or 9.30 p.m. On the fateful
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU
707
night, the deceased was working in the Bank after the normal banking honrs. At about 7 .30 p.m. the appeliant No. I (accused) came to
the bank premises, as he used to work late in the evenings and help
:the decea•ed. Some time after 7 .30 p.m. the deceased went to the
toilet where he was strnck on the head by the assailant with a stitcher
as a result whereof he slumped. Thereafter he was strangulated with
a towel and also stabbed to death by a pair of stitchers. At about 9
p.m. the accused was seen coming out of the building by PW 18,
Smt. Kanaka. The accused closed the outer door of the Bank and was
seen by PW 18 going. He returned with a s_uitcase, re-entered the
Bank premises, and came out with a bag, suitcase and a brief case,
.and after placing the suitcase on the steps went inside again and
came out with a large coffee coloured skybag. He then got an autorickshaw from the Burma Bazar and disappeared into the night in
the auto-rikshaw.
On a reference by the Additional Sessions Judge, the High
Court confirmed the convictions and sentences of both the appellants. The appellants then appealed to this Court for relief by this
appeal.
Dismissing the appeal with a modification, directing that the
sentence of death passed on appellant No. I be converted into one of
life imprisonment, the Court,
HELD: The prosecution case against the appellants rested
purely on circumstantial evidence. The law relating to the proof of
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a case based purely on circumstantial evidence has been settled hy
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several authorities of this Court as well as the High Courts. [724F-G I
In cases where the evidence is of a circumstantial nature, the
circumstances from which the conclusion of guilt is to be drawn
should in the first instance be fully established, and all the facts so
established should be consistent only with the hypothesis of the guilt
of the accused. Again, the circumstances should be of a conclusive
nature and tendency and they should be such as to exclude every
hypothesis but the one proposed to be proved. There must be a chain
of evidence so far complete as not to leave any reasonable ground for
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a conclusion consistent with the innocence of the accused and it must
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708
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1988] 3 S.C.R.
be such as to show that within all human probability the act must
have been done by the accused. [72SD-E]
The Court did not discover any infirmity in the reasoning or
the eonclusion arrived at by the Additional Sessions Judge or the
High Court. [72SF]
Tlte Court enumerated and went through the circumstances
arising from the evidence adduced by the prosecution broadly under
the heads-(1) The accused had occasion to learn the_ method of
operating the safety vault, (2) The fact that the accused was last seen
leaving the Bank premises, (3) Purchase by the accused of a suitcase
and a skybag from Burma Bazar, (4) Stay of the accused at Hotel
Chola Sheraton under the assumed name of Maharaj (5) Stay of the
accused at Hotel Moti Mahal at Mangalore, (6) Recovery of coffeecolour skybag from the residence of late Kumari Usha Rani, sister of
the accused, and (7) Recovery of the stolen money of the Bank from
D the accused, and thought that the cumulative effect of all these
circumstances was sufficient and conclusive to raise an inference of
guilt. [726D; 727F-G; 73JC; 732H; 733F; 734C, El
The accused Laxmi Raj Shelly was entitled to tender the newsE
paper report from the Indian Express of the 29th May and the
regional newspapers of the 30th May, regarding both the appellants
being taken into custody at Mangalore and the recovery of the entire
stolen amount from the residence of appellant No. 2 at Mangalore,
along with his statement under s. 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, but the appellants did not examine the Editors and news
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reporters of the newspapers. Judicial notice cannot be taken of the
facts stated in a news item being in the nature of hearsay secondary
evidence, unless proved by evidence aliunde. A report in a
newspaper is only hearsay evidence. A newspaper is not one of the
documents referred to in s. 78(2) of the Evidence Act, by which an
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allegation of fact can be proved. The presumption of genuineness
attached under s. 81 of the Evidence Act to a newspaper report cannot be treated as proof of facts reported therein. It is now wellsettled that a statement of fact contained in a newspaper is merely
hearsay and, therefore, inadmissible in evidence in the absence of the
maker of the statement appearing in Court and deposing to have
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perceived the fact rep~rted. The accused should have, therefore, pro-
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU
709
duced the persons in whose presence the seizure of the stolen money
from the house of appellant No. 2 at Mangalore had been effected, or
examined the press correspondents in proof of the truth of the
contents of the news items appearing in the newspapers. There was
nothing on record to substantiate the facts reported in the newspapers, showing recovery of the stolen amount from the residence of
the appellant No. 2 at Mangalore. There was, therefore, no reason to
discard the testimony of PW 50, Deviarigamani, Inspector of Police
(Crimes) and the seizure witnesses which established that the amount
in question had been actually recovered at Madras on the 29th and
the 30th, as alleged. [735D-H; 736D-E]
The evidence did not clearly indicate the exact manner in which
the murder had been committed. The appellant No. 1 had not taken
any weapon for assaulting the deceased but had used two stitchers
lying in the Bank premises, indicating that the murder was not
pre-planned. Looking to the nature of the weapon used, it seemed
that the accused acted under a momentary impulse. In the circumstances, the Court directed that the sentence of death paS5ed on
appellant No. 1 be converted into one of life imprisonment. Subject
to this modification, the appeal failed and was dismissed and
the judgment and sentences passed by the Additional Sessions Judge,
affirmed by the High Court in appeal were upheld being appropriate. [737C-E]
Earabhadrappa v. State of Karnataka, [1983] 2 SCC 330; Reg
.v. Hodge, [1838] 2 Law 227, referred to.
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CRIMINAL
APPELLATE
JURISDICTION: Criminal F
Appeal No. 36 of 1987.
From the Judgment and Order dated 1.9.1986 of the High
Court of Madras in Crl. Appeal No. 893of1985.
N. Natarajan, V. Krishnamurthi and V. Balachandran for the
Appellants.
U.R. Lalit, ·A.V. Rangam, V.R. Venkataswami and L.
Rajendran for the Respondents.
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1988] 3 S.C.R.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
SEN, J. Appellant No. 1, Laxmi Raj Shetty is under sentence
of death on his conviction under s. 302 of the Indian. Penal Code,
1860 for having committed the murder of t'ie deceased P.N.
Gnanasambandam, Actg. Manager of the Karnataka Bank, Main
Branch, Madras by the First Additional Sessions Judge, Madras by
his judgment and sentence dated October 28, 1985. He has further
been convicted under s. 392 for having committed the offence of
robbery of Rs.13,97,900 from the strong room of the Bank and also
under s. 449 for having committed house trespass with intent tct
commit the said robbery and murder. He has been_ sentenced to
undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of seven years on each
of these counts and the sentences are directed to merge in the
sentence of death. Appellant No. 2 Shivaram Shetty, father of
appellant No. 1, a retired Sergeant Major of the Indian Air Force,
re-employed as Security Officer, Karnataka Bank, Main Branch,
Mangalore has been convicted by the learned Additional Sessions
Judge under s. 212 for having harboured his son Laxmi Raj Shetty
having known or having reason to believe that he had committed
the murder of the Bank Manager and disappeared with a very large
sum of money from the Bank and also under s. 411 for having with
dishonest intention retained possession of the huge sum of
Rs.12,27,500 knowing the same to be stolen and sentenced to
undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of three years on both
counts; the sentences have been ordered to run concurrently. On a
reference by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, a Division
Bench of the High Court by its judgment dated September 1, 1986
has confirmed the sentence of death passed on appellant No. 1 Laxmi
Raj Shetty under s. 366 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 as
also the conviction and sentences passed on him under ss. 392 and
449 of the Indian Penal Code and those under ss. 212 and 411 on his
father Shiva Ram Shetty.
The Karnataka Bank has seven branches in the Metropolitan
City of Madras, the main branch being at 171, Thambu Chetty
Street. In each branch there is a strong room for keeping the cash
and other valuables. The main Branch at 171, Tham bu Che tty
Street is on the first floor and the Regional Development Office at
H the second floor of the same building which belongs to the Bank,
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LAXMI RAJ v . .STATE OF TAMIL NADU [SEN, J.[
711
the ·ground floor being used for a car park and godown. The strong
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room in the main branch has a double locking system with two sets of
keys. One set. of keys i:e. including the master key remained with
the officer next to the Manager and the· second set with the officer
next to him. The strong room could not be opened except by the use
of both the keys. The total cash in the strong room on May 20, 1983
as per the entry in the Double Lock R_egister Exh. · PlO, was
Rs.14,26, 113. 70 in bundles of currency notes bearing the Bank seal
MO 11 Series to MO 169 Series. This is borne out by the Cash
Scroll Register Exh. P8. The Cash Scroll Register was not kept
under lock and key and used to remain on the table of PW 6 Smt.
Shasikala, Officer and she has testified that. the total cash at the end
of that day was Rs.14,26,113.70 and she handed over the amounUo
the Double Lock Officer. The assailant would therefore know by a
look at the Cash Scroll Register as to the exact amount i~ the strong
room on that day.
The topography of the Main Branch is given in the sketch plan
Exh. PL The Manager's cabin is on. the first floor at the north
eastern comer. The central hall in the middle is empanelled with
different counters and there is a big lounge outside facing the
Manager's cabin. The· Bank officials used to sit in the central hall at
their respective places while transacting the business of the Bank.
The bathroom and the W.C. where the murder was committed, are
on the south western comer. For going to the bathroom, one has to
cross the central hall, get into a foyer where the water cooler is kept
and beyond it is the bathroom and W.C. Just across the foyer and
opposite the bathroom is a flight of steps leading upto a mazzanine
floor on which the strong room is located.
It appears that the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty, aged 24 years is
a 6 feet tall, fair-complexioned young man with curly hair. He along
with PW 9 Govindaraj was recruited as a trainee clerk at the Main
Branch in the month of August 1982, placed on probation in
October 1982 and thereafter confirmed in the month of April 1983.
It has come in evidence that the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty and the
deceased Gnanasambandham were known to PW 18 from before as
they both used to leave the Bank premises together at nigbt around
9 or 9.30 p.m. The accused was a karate expert and always attired iii
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a red T-shirt carrying a karate bag on his shoulder. He was thus a
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1988]-3- S.C.R.
man with distinctive features and would naturally stand out in a
crowd. All the other witnesses examined by the prosecution to
prove the various circumstances appearing in the case after th·e
gruesome murder speak of the person involved being a tall, faircomplexioned young man with curly hair, aged about 24 or 25 years.
The evidence also shows that PW 50 Deviasigamani, Inspector of
Police who was investigating into the crime carried with him a
photograph of the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty and when the witnesses were shown the photograph, they identified the accused to be
the person in question.
According to the prosecution, on the fateful night i.e. on May
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20, 1983 the deceased Gnanasambandham was, as usual, working in
the Bank after the normal banking hours. He used to sit on his table
in the central hall next to the Manager's cabin underneath a fan.
Being the seniormost officer; he had the custody of the first set of
keys to the strong room, the second set of keys used to remain with
o the officer next to him PW 16 K. Chandrasekara Holla. Apparently,
at about 7.30 p.m. appellant No. 1 Laxmi Raj Shetty (hereinafter
referred to as the accused), after doing physical exercises at
Physical Development Institute, returned to the Bank premises.
The prosecution case is that during the probationery period, the
accused used to work late in the evenings and gained the confidence
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of the deceased by helping him with the work. They would both
leave the Bank together after completing the day's work round~
about 9 p.m. The deceased would hand over the keys of the outer
door and the shutter to the accused who would lock the same and
hand back the keys to the deceased. The accused would then
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accompany the deceased some way towards his house. On the
fateful night i.e. on May 20, 1983, the cash balance in the strong
room at the end of the day, according to the testimony of PW 6
Smt. Shasikala as supported by the entry in the Cash Scroll Register
Exh. P 8 and that in the Double Lock Register Exh. P 10, was
Rs.14,26,113.70 in bundles of currency notes of different denominaG
lions, all bearing Bank seals being MO 11 Series to MO 169 Series.
From the testimony of PW 16 who had the custody of the second set
of keys and was expected to take them home after the day's
business, it appears that he would instead lock the same in the
cupboard of his table and take the key of the cupboard with him. At
H times, out of forgetfulness, he would leave the key in one of the
drawers.
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU [SEN, J.[
t·
On that day, unfortunately, PW 16 left the key of the
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~ cupboard on the table which sealed the fate of the deceased .. On the
night the deceased was working in the Bank after the normal banking hours. Presumably some time after 7.30 p.m. he left his seat in
the central hall to go to the bathroom and when he was in the toilet
he was struck on the head with the iron portion of one of the
~-· stitchers as a result of which he slumped. Thereafter the assailant
first roughed him up, then strangulated him with a twisted towel
with a knot and stabbed to death by a pair of stitchers on both sides
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of his neck, ordinarily used as part of official stationery for stitching
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papers. He had apparently been done to death to relieve himself of
the first set of keys.
At bout 9 p.m. the accused was seen coming out of the building by PW 18 Smt. Kanaka, a flower vendor, sitting on the steps of
the Bank. The accused closed the outer door of the°'Bank and was
seen by PW 18 going towards Burma Bazar. He returned after some
time with a light blue colour suitcase and re-entered into the Bank
premises. After about half an hour he came out with a bag on his
shoulder, the blue colour suitcase in one hand and a brief case
which the deceased used to carry with him, in the other and placed
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the suitcase on the steps of the Bank. He again went inside and
brought out a !arge coffee coloured skybag and placed it beside the
suitcase. He then went towards Burma Bazar and came back with
l!n auto-rickshaw and with the help of PW 31 Venkatesan, auto--
rickshaw driver, placed the suitcase and the skybag in the autorickshaw and disappeared into the night. The testimony of PW 18 is
{. that she repeatedly queried whether the Periya Ayya, meaning the
elderly person or the Manager Ayya thereby meaning the deceased
had not come but the accused did not respond to her queries.
On the next morning i.e. on May 21, 1983 at about 8.15 a.m.
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PW 2 Mallaiya, the day watchman opened the Bank premises and
when he switched on the lights, he found the fan over the table of G
the deceased still on and he switched it off. He also found the Seiko
~ watch of the deceased, his ball pen, pass book and other belongings
along with an open ledger lying on the table. He asked PW 1
Lakshmi,. the sweeper, not to touch any of these articles and attend
to her work. His version is that he went out for a cup of tea but
shortly thereafter PW 1 came out shouting that there was a dead
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[!988] 3 S.C.R ..
body lying in the toilet and in the meanwhile the :nembers of the j
A staff had started arriving. PW 2 along with Venkataraj, Cashier and·' i
one Rajaiah went inside and saw the body of the deceased sprawled
in the toilet. He immediately contacted PW 3 P.T. Rajan, Chief
Manager of the ,Bank and asked him to come at once. PW 3 rushed
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to the Bank and saw the ghastly sight and got in touch with the
police control room.
On the 21st morning which was a Saturday, the accused attended· the Bank as usual presumably to allay suspicion. He was "i
present when the Investigating Officer PW 47 Anandam, Inspector
of Police, Esplanade, B-2 Police Station came to the Bank along
C with a Sub-Inspector and a Police Constable on receipt of a message
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flashed by the police control room, . as conveyed by PW 46
Manikkam, Sub-Inspector of Police attached to B-1 North Beach
Police Station. On his arrival he took cognizance of the offence on
the first information report Exh. P3 lodged by PW 3 and started
D making investigation and made the usual seizures. After holding an
inquest over the dead body, he sent for the police photographer, the
fingerprint expert and the police dog squad. He also recorded the
statements of PW 1 Lakshmi, PW 2 Mallaiya, PW 3 P.T. Rajan and
PW 16 K. Chandrasekara Holla .and one Ravi Shankar. He did not
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interrogate the other Bank officials, 'including the accused. The
testimony of PW 3 is that immediately on arrival at the Bank he sent
for PW 16 and asked for the second set of keys. He came and toM
him· that the key of his cupboard was missing and therefore it could
not be opened. It had then to be wrenched open and the second set
of keys was also found missing. PW 3 told PW 47 that he would get J
the duplicate set of keys from the Triplicane Branch and with the
help of duplicate set of keys the strong room was opened at about
2.30 p.m. and a sum of Rs. 13,97 ,900 was found missing. A message
was then transmitted by PW 3 to PW 10. 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.
PW 43 Dr. Cecilia Cyril, Associate P~ofessor, Department of /
Forensic Medicine, Medical College, Madras performed an autopsy
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on the dead body of the deceased. She found that the deceased had
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been strangulated by a dark colour twisted towel 36x7 c.m. long
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU [SEN, J.)
715
cartilage. She found several external injuries. Underneath the towel
there ·was a faint ligature mark 32x5 c.m. over" the front side and
back · of the. neck. 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. The
doctor. also·ifound ;two stitchers· measuring 14 c.m: in ·length thrust
into· bcith sides of the neck in .the front. 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. On dissection, .·she found extensive
bruising of tissues over both sides of thyroid cartilage 7x5x 1/4 c.m.
as also on the front of trachea 7x3x 1/2 c.m. According to the
D~ct~r, ea~h of injuries no~. 1, 2 and 3was,by its~lf sufficient in the
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ordinary co.urse 9f natur,e to cause .. death. She furtl)er opined that
the cumulative effect of s~m~·ofthe inj~ries viz. nos. 1-3, 4-10 and
17 w'.as necessarily' fatai. She stated .that the. blood, marks on the
walls of the toilet a~ ~ell -~s'o~ th~'fio~r co~Jd be d~e to sprouting
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and spillage of blood .. In her opinion, death was not. .caused, by
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For quite.a while, the police drew a blank. 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. During the co:use of.the inquiry he.traced out one
Ganesan, a plumber by profession;. who,. used ,to sleep on '.the
., pave.ment .near the Bank. He furnished a valuable .. clue:whith tilth
mately led co the detection:of the murderer. 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. On getting
this yital information:PW 47 went to .. village.Tharamani.buUound
the house of.Sm!. Kanaka .Jocked. On.enquiry.he learnt that.she had
gone to the.house of: her sister at Vyasarpadi. llW·47.obviously·did
not· realise .the importance ·of. this :witness: He, states that he did -ncit
go tO" Vyasarpadi that night although:the ·place·was only 7 kilo-.
metres • .from the ·Police Station as it was.very. late ... 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. On the.next
morning i.e.· the 22nd, under'the·orders· of·the 0Deputy Commissioner of Police, the case was transferred to the Crime Branch and
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1988] 3 S.C.R.
investigation was taken over by PW 48 Guruvandi, Inspector of
Police (Crimes), M-1 Post Trust Police Station, without further
progress. 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 the police. He admits that he did not go himself to Krishna
Bhawan Hotel but sent a Police Constable but he could not find
Neerappan.
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. 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. He left a message
that she should report to the Police Station on her return. 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. He
accordingly went to the Christian Home where the accused was
staying in Room No. 4 but found the room locked. He examined
PW 27 Thirupathi, mess boy and learnt that the accused did not
come for supper on the 20th night and therefore he had kept his
food. 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. On
the 21st morning at about 5 a.m. PW 27 saw the accused going up
the stairs to his room. 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. 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. 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. 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. At 4 p.m. PW
50 left for Tharamani where he found PW 18 Smt. Kanaka at her
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU [SEN, J.[
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. 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. 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. They reached Mangalore at 9.30 p.m. At 11.30 p.m. PW
50 called on the Deputy Superintendent of Police and requested for
help of the local police. 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.
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
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left for Madras by the West Coast Express. The police carried on.
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intensive search of the house till about 2 a.m. but nothing incriminating was found. When they questioned appellant no. 2 he did not
disclose that his son had already left for Madras by train. 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. On the 27th night at about 9 p.m. PW
50 along with the police party left for Madras and reached there in
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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. At the Madras Central, PW 50 received inforrnaF
tion at about 1.45 p.m. that the accused was seen moving about in
My Lady's Park. 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. On the 30th G
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. 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. At
about 9.30 a.m. he accordingly went to the Madras Central presumH -
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1988] 3 S.C.R.
ably because he thought that appellant no. 2 Shivaram Shetty would
be arriving by train but he could not be traced there. At 2 a.m. he
obtained police remand of the accused Laxmi Raj Shetty. 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.
However, on ihe 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. PW
50 asked the rickshaw-puller to stop and took appellant no. 2
Shivaram Shetty into custody. Appellant no. 2 was carrying three
boxes. The police party returned to the Flower Bazar Police Station
where the boxes were opened. 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.
The case presents a feature which is rather disturbing and gave
rise to a prolonged argument lasting over several days. The Indian
Express, Mangalore edition and the two regional newspapers Malai
Murasu and Makkal Kura!, 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 from the
residence of appellant No. 2 at Mangalore and that both the accused
had been taken into custody. A similar news item appeared in the
regional newspaper Dina Thanthi on the 30th. If the news item
published was true it would falsify the entire prosecution case about
the alleged recoveries at Madras. There is however nothing on
record to substantiate the story appearing in the newspapers. 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 3·1st carried a
news iteni about the function and reported that the Chief Minister
used the ·occasion to caution the newspapers against the d~nger of
conjectural reporting of such crimes during investigation, based
on rumours uiirelated to facts, which would not only preju'iHce the
case but sometimes pave the way for the offender to escape. He said
that rumoimi were bound to sidetrack and mislead the public"and
even police officers concerned in solving the crime.· After the
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LAXMl RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU [SEN, J.[
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. He informed that a police party was- already
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there and the father Shivaram Shetty was likely to be nabbed
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In the meanwhile, the family of the appellants suffered a.great
tragedy. On the 30th Smt. 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 humilia·
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tion and committed suicide by walking into the Arabian Sea. 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.
The appellants abjUred their guilt and denied the commission
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of the alleged offences. When' the accused were questioned about
the facts and circumstances appearing against them, they ·denied
their complicity in the crime. Appellant no. 1 asserted that he had
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left for Mangalore on the 22nd as he was feeling unwell. When he
called upon PW.10, Chairman of the Bank, who .enquired as to ~hy
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he had come to Mangalore, he told him of his ailment. On his
advice he left for Madras to resume his duties. 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. When he went near them he was tapped
on his shoulder by it -.itranger who asked him wheiher he was Laxmi
.R,aj:~heity. On his giving an affirmativ~· answer:he asked _him to
accompany hiiil. On his q~ery he discIOs'ed iliat he was" a police
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officer: By that iime the other members of tlie staff had siopped
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him and they advised him to accoinpany the.police. Appellant No. 2
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.~tat7s ,tha\ 11~ :had qn ,26th,~et .. the, \hairman of _th<;r:-!3'\nk, .. and
inforll:led ,_that _h\s son had come to: Mang,.lore and, the;Chairman ·
wantt;d to spea1' to .him. He.;acc,ordingly, w~nt with, his. son.who
enquired.abouJ 1his •ailment and,,then.directed _himJtO;;proceed.,to
Madr.as. He.admitted·that there·was a•searchmade·of.his house,ori•the
night between 26th and 27th at Mangalore but the police did noi find
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
11988] 3 S.C.R.
A anything. 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. He was advised by PW 10 to accompany
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the police and he was first taken to the Chairman's house and from
there to the Blue Star Hotel at Mangalore. 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
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and nights till he was produced before the Court along with his son on
the 31st.
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 accuse~ and all the facts so established are consistent
only with the hypothesis of their guilt and exclude every reasonable
D possibility of their innocence. He accordingly convicted the accused
with the commission of the offences with which they were charged and
sentenced them as above. 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
E established its case against both the accused beyond all reasonable
doubt and accordingly maintained the conviction and sentences passed
by the learned Additional Sessions Judge.
The prosecution case against the appellants rests purely on
circumstantial evidence. The circumstances relied upon by the proF secution against the principal accused for the charges of murder and
robbery which were parts of the same transaction are: (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. The
G 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 bureaus, in one of
which the currency notes were kept. The murder and robbery were
H obviously an inside job by a person who had knowledge about the
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LAXMI RAJ v. STATE OF TAMIL NADU {SEN, J.J
721
manner in which access could be had to the safety vault. (ii) The
accused had gained the confidence of the deceased as a sincere and
Joyal worker by attendingto the work every day even after the banking
hours and assisting the deceased, leaving the Bank at about 9 or 9 .30.
p.m. with the deceased as was clear from the evidence of PW 5
Rangarajan, PW 6 Smt. Shasikala, PW 9 Govindaraj, PW 12 P.
Balasubramaniam and PW 18 Smt. Kanaka (iii) The accused had the
opportunity of knowing about the cash balance available in the Bank .
from the cash scroll register Exh. P 8 which was always kept open on
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the table of PW 6 Smt. Shasikala whose seat was adjacent to that of the
accused as is clear from the testimony of PW. 6 (iv) The accused had
knowledge about the availability of the first set of keys including the
matter key with the deceased and the second set of keys with PW 16
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Chandrasekara Holla while he worked in the Bank for a period of
about nine months. He also noticed that PW 16 was in the habit of
leaving of second set of keys in.the cupboard of his table and at times,
used to leave the key of the cupboard in one of the drawers. (v) The
movement and conduct of the accused afterwards. After he was seen
coming out of the Bank premises on that night at 9 p.m., his act of D
going towards Burma Bazar and returning within half an hour. with a
light blue colour suitcase, then entering into the Bank, again coming
out of the Bank half an hour thereafter with a bag on his shoulder and
a suitcase in one hand and a brief-case which the deceased used to
carry with him in the other, placing the suitcase on the steps of the
Bank where PW 18, the flower vendor, was sitting and thereafter
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bringing out a large coffee colour sky-bag and placing the same beside
the suitcase, closing the outer door and the shutter and locking the
same, then proceeding along Errabalu Chettu Street towards Burma
Bazar and bringing an auto-rickshaw, placing the suitcase and the
sky-bag with the help of the auto-rickshaw driver in the auto-rickshaw
and disappearing towards the High Court. (vi) His act of not respondF
ing to the queries put by PW 18 about the deceased whom he used to
accompany every night on closing the Bank. (vii) His act of not returning to the Christian Home where he stayed and instead staying at
Hotel Chola Sheraton on the night of 20th and the whole of 21st. He
obviously stayed at the five star hotel for reasons of safety as he was
carrying the huge amou11t of about Rs.14 lakhs.