In the instant case, the appellant approached the supreme court aggrieved by the impugned judgement of the Division bench of high court of Madhya Pradesh dismissing the appeal preferred by the appellant challenging the judgment passed by the Additional Sessions Judge convicting the appellant for offences punishable under Section 302 read with s/s 201 and 506-B of IPC. The facts of the case are: the appellant, Bhagchandra, is the real brother of  deceased Thakur das and Devki Prasad. One early morning, the complainant, Kiran Patel while returning home, saw the appellant leaving her house armed, suspecting a foul play because of an enmity between the appellant and the deceased Thakur Das and Devki Prasad. On entering the house, Thakur Das was found lying dead  with his neck detached from the body. When rushing to the field nearby the house, the complainant saw the appellant assaulting her husband Devki Prasad with an axe, and although she tried to stop, he threatened to kill her too. The trial court convicted the appellant but the appellant denied all charges and claimed he was falsely implicated to attain the property.  He then preferred an appeal to the High Court. However, the High Court dismissed the appeal and confirmed the death penalty awarded by the Trial court. Hence, the present appeal. 

The learned could on behalf of the appellant, Shri Hariharan, submitted that the entire case is fabricated and further submitted that the evidence placed on record does not establish the guilt of the appellant beyond reasonable doubt. He further submitted that since the prosecution has withheld an important witness, Kisiyabai, mother of the deceased Thakur Das and Devki Prasad as well as the appellant, an   adverse  inference needs to be drawn against the prosecution. Also, the recovery of axe under section 27 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 is of no relevance since, apart from   the   Serology   Report   not   supporting   the   prosecution case, the said axe has not been put to any of the witnesses to establish that it was the same weapon which was used in the crime. 

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To the contrary, Smt. Chaturvedi contended that both the inferior  courts have correctly convicted the appellant and submitted that minor inconsistencies in evidence are irrelevant and further submitted that merely because the Serology Report is not conclusive, it cannot be a ground   to   disbelieve   the   prosecution   case.  

Analyzing all the facts It could be seen that all these witnesses establish the presence of each other and referring to the cases of the State of Uttar Pradesh v. Krishna Master and Others [(2010) 12 SCC 324] ‘Minor   discrepancies   on   trivial matters   not   touching   the   core   of   the   case, hyper technical approach by taking sentences torn   out   of   context   here   or   there   from   the evidence,   attaching   importance   to   some technical   error   committed   by   the investigating officer  not going to the root of the   matter   would   not   ordinarily   permit rejection of the evidence as a whole’. It is further to be noted   that   the   witnesses   are   rustic   villagers   and   some inconsistencies in their depositions are bound to be there.

Bachan Singh  v.  State of  Punjab [(1980) 2 SCC 684] and  Machhi Singh and Others v. State of Punjab [ (1983) 3 SCC 470] , In deciding whether a case falls within the category of the rarest of rare, the brutality, and/or the gruesome and/or heinous nature of the crime is the sole criterion. It is not just the crime which the Court is to take into consideration, also the criminal, the state of his mind, his socioeconomic background, etc. Awarding  death sentences is an exception, and life imprisonment is the rule.”

Taking all the factors into consideration, the conviction of the appellant for the offences punishable under Sections   302,   201   and   506­B   of   the   IPC   is   affirmed. However, the  death  sentence awarded to  the appellant is converted to life imprisonment for a period of 30 years.