STATE OF WEST BENGAL Vs. SHEW MANGAL SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Special Leave Petition is filed by the State of West Bengal against judgment of acquittal dated August 1, 1980, passed by the High Court of Calcutta in Criminal Appeal No. 18 of 1980.

(2.) The respondents, who are all Police Officers, were tried by the learned Judge, City Sessions Court, Calcutta, under Section 302 read with Section 34 of the Penal Code, on the charge that at about 10.00 p. m. on November 11, 1970, they, along with Bibhuti Chakraborty, the then Deputy Commissioner of Police (North Division), P. R.. Dey, the then Assistant Commissioner of Police (N. S.) and some others, caused the death of Ranjit Chakraborty and Samir Chakraborty by causing them gunshot injuries.

(3.) The case of the prosecution is that the deceased Ranjit and his brother Samir were siting outside their house when three police vehicles carrying the respondents and other Police officers, numbering about 15 or 20 in all, suddenly stopped in front of the house. The Police officers, led by Bibhuti Chakraborty, rushed towards them and their elder brother Benoy, with revolvers in their hands. Ranjit disclosed that he was a constable of the Calcutta Police and Samir said that he was an N. V. F. cadet. Bibhuti Chakraborty then fired a shot from his revolver at Ranjit from a point-blank range. Respondent 2, Chitta Ranjan Ganguly, and respondent 4, Bimal Thakur, pursued Ranjit who had in the meanwhile rushed into his house. They dragged him out of the house, whereupon respondent 4 fired a shot at him. The other Police officers, including some of the respondents, also fired at Ranjit. In the meantime, the other brother Samir who was trying to get into the house, was caught hold of by some of the respondents and respondent 1, Shew Mangal Singh, fired a shot at him. Samir and Ranjit were thereafter dumped into a Police jeep and the convoy of the Police officers went to a place near Rajarghat on the bank of the river Hooghly. Samir was crying in agony. Some of the Police officers, who were sitting in an Ambassador car, ordered that Samir's voice should be silenced. Thereupon respondent 3 Anil Maitra, who was sitting in a jeep, fired a shot at him. Ranjit and Samir were then taken to R. G. Kar Hospital, where Ranjit was declared dead. Samir died within a few minutes thereafter, before any medical assistance could be given to him. Their brother Benoy was taken into custody by the Police officers and was produced before a Magistrate on the following day, when he was released on bail.