STATE OF A.P. vs Y. SANKARAPPA — Crl.A. No. 594/2003

Case Summary: State of A.P. v. Y. Sankarappa (Crl.A. 594/2003) The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's acquittal and convicted respondent Sankarappa under Section 304 Part II IPC for causing his wife's death by pouring kerosene and setting her on fire. The High Court had wrongly rejected the wife's dying declaration to the Magistrate merely because the doctor did not explicitly state she was in fit mental condition; the Court held that burn victims with 50-60% burns can remain mentally coherent for two weeks. Since Sankarappa had already served 4+ years in jail, the Court maintained the conviction but reduced the sentence to time already undergone. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.