The Madhya Pradesh High Court has modified a man’s conviction from murder (Section 302 IPC) to culpable homicide not amounting to murder (Section 304 Part II IPC). The case involved a husband accused of killing his wife by hitting her with a brick during a sudden domestic quarrel. The trial court had sentenced him to life imprisonment. He appealed the conviction, claiming there was no intent to kill. The Court noted that the incident happened in the heat of the moment after a dispute over money. Witnesses, including the couple’s son, turned hostile during the trial. However, the Court relied on the medical report, which confirmed a fatal head injury caused by a blunt object, and statements under Section 164 CrPC. The Court held that although the man had knowledge that his actions could cause death, he lacked the intention to kill.
There was no premeditation. The altercation escalated suddenly. The Court found the act fell under Section 304 Part II IPC and not under murder. It accordingly reduced the conviction, acknowledging that the man acted recklessly but without murderous intent.
