RAMAPHUPALA REDDY Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants and one Boya Ranudu were charged with the murders of Boya Thimmiah and Boya Sanjeevu as well as some other lesser offences at about 8 a.m. on September 8, 1964 near mile stone No 81/2 on the Dharmavaram - Kalyandurg road. They were tried by the learned District Judge, Anantapur for those offences. The learned District Judge disbelieving the witnesses who spoke to the incident viz. P. Ws. 1 to 3 acquitted all the accused. As against that decision of the learned District Judge, the State went up in appeal to the High Court of Andhra Pradesh The High Court accepted the appeal so far as the appellants (Accused 1 to 5) are concerned and convicted them under various charges including one under S. 302/149, I.P.C. for which offence all of them were sentenced for imprisonment for life. It is not necessary to refer to the other charges because those charges are interwoven with the offence of murder. No arguments were addressed to us about those charges separately. The question for decision is whether the incident spoken to by the P. Ws 1 to 3 is true If we accept the evidence regarding the incident, there is no doubt that the accused are guilty of the offences held to have been proved against them by the High Court. If on the other hand, we are unable to accept that evidence then they are entitled to be acquitted of all the charges. This appeal against the decision of the High Court was brought after obtaining special leave from this Court.

(2.) It was alleged on behalf of the prosecution and not denied on behalf of the accused that from a very long time there were two factions in Thogarakunta village in Dharmavaram Taluk. One of the factions was known as Kapu faction though in that faction there were a sprinkling of Boyas. The other faction was known as Boya faction. In that faction there were some Kapus. Between these factions there was bitter enmity. There were cases and counter cases between the two factions. On the date of the occurrence the deceased and some of their partymen had to appear in a criminal case pending against them in the Court of First Class Magistrate, Dharmavaram.

(3.) The prosecution case is that some of the accused in that case had gone to Dharmavaram on the evening of the 7th itself. But the two deceased persons left for Dharmavaram on the early morning of September 8, 1964. On the way at a coffee hotel they met P.Ws. 1 and 2 who were also going to Dharmavaram. The four joined together and proceeded to Dharmavaram after taking some coffee at the hotel of P.W. 5. P.W. 3, a relation of the deceased persons also left for Dharmavaram that morning carrying a bag of cold rice for the accused in the case. It is said that he was going at some distance behind the four persons referred to earlier. Meanwhile accused 5 Boya Chinna Polappa came from behind and went past them briskly When the aforementioned four persons proceeded a little further all the accused armed with pistols and other weapons emerged out of a dried up deep water channel and surrounded the two deceased persons. At that time accused 1 and 2 had revolvers in their hands, accused 3 had a dagger. Accused 1 fired revolver shots at the deceased Boya Thimmiah twice or thrice. At the same time accused 3 stabbed him below his armpit with a dagger. When Thimmiah fell down, accused 4 picked up a big stone (of the size of pumpkin) from near the road and dropped it on the head of Thimmiah. When the accused were attacking Thimmiah, Sanjeevu began to run from that place but accused 2 and 5 chased him and accused 2 fired at him twice from behind. On receiving these shots Sanjeevu fell down with his back to the sky. Then accused 5 picked up a big stone and violently threw it on the head of Sanjeevu. Meanwhile seeing P.W. 3 coming that way the accused gave him a chase but he ran for his life. They were not able to overtake him. At this stage one of the accused threw a stone which hit him on the right calf muscle but yet he ran away and his pursuers were not able to catch him.