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Criminal Bail Application No. 1413 of 1976, decide on 221id C: Amber1976.

S. 497-Petitioner, accused of murder, a woman and only evidence against her consisting of production of blood-stained clothes by her and some healed injuries on her person-Bail granted, in circumstances.

Muhammad Ali Shaikh for Applicant.

Applicant alongwith her husband Muhammad Yousaf accused in a case under section 302 read with section 34, P. P. C. The prosecution case is that co-accused Muhammad Yousuf had two wives, the present applicant alit: Mst. Akhtari Begum whom he married about 9 years ago and had two children from her. Deceased Mst. Akhtari Begum used to occupy the upper storey while the applicant and her husband used to reside on the ground floor of the same house. Co-accused Muhammad Yousuf lodged F. 1. R. At Market Police Station, Hyderabad at 9-45 p.m. stating that early in the morning he had sent the applicant to Latifabad to stay in the house of his brother Muhammad Younus whose family was alone and he went to his duty in the morning at 9 a.m. but when he returned at 9-30 p.m. he found his wife Mst. Akhtari Bagum lying in a pool of blood on the ground having cut on her neck. He further added that his wife had committed suicide as she was ailing for the last four to five months. The post mortem examination of the deceased however disclosed that she had 9 injuries on her body and her death was found to be homicidal arid not suicidal as alleged by co-accused 1Vluhamiiiad Yousuf and consequently the investigating police after lodging the F. I. R. arrested the applicant and her husband and challaned them to stand their trial.

The evidence against the applicant and her husband consists of Muhammad Yasin and Yamin who heard the cries coming from the house and shouted thereafter saw both the accused persons coming out of the house, extra judical confession of co-accused Muhammad Yousuf and the presence of 3 injuries oil the person of the applicant out of which one was on the inner side of her right palm, one oil the left side of the neck and abrasion oil the front of the chest and the production of blood-stained clothes by her.

Mr. Muhammad Ali Shaikh, learned counsel for the applicant contended that there was no direct evidence in this case and the only evidence was that of Yasin and Yamin who only saw the applicant coming out of the house but since both these witnesses did not report the incident to the police even after extra-judicial confession was allegedly made to them by co-accused Muhammad Yousuf, their evidence was not worthy of reliance. He lastly contended that in any case, the applicant was a woman and there being no direct evidence against her and the extra judicial confession of her husband being no evidence against her, she was entitled to be released on bail in view of the Exception to section 497, Cr. P. C.

Learned Advocate-general opposed the bail on the ground that there was sufficient evidence against the applicant in that she had produced blood stained clothes before the police and bore injuries oil her person which sufficiently connected her with the offence.

I would refrain from going deep into the merits of the case at this stage. Suffice it to say, that the applicant is a woman and the evidence so far oil record against leer is production of blood-stained clothes by her and the healed injuries on her person. In these circumstances, I am inclined to grant bail to the applicant. I accordingly order that she be released on bail on her furnishing one surety in the sum of Rs. 10,000 with P. R. in the like amount to the satisfaction of the trial Court. I would however like to make it clear that the main reason that bias weighed with me for granting bail is that she is a woman and any party including the trial Court for tile purposes of trial shall press none of the observations made above oil the merits of the bail application into aid.

Petition allowed.

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