JEEWAN Vs. STATE OF UTTARAKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present appeal is directed against the judgment of the High Court of Uttarakhand at Nainital dated 14th October, 2008 vide which the High Court confirmed the judgment of the trial court and dismissed the appeal preferred by the accused against their conviction and order of sentence.

(2.) The conviction of the accused is based upon the version of the prosecution that on 12th March, 1991 at about 10 p.m., complainant Bhupal Chandra, who later came to be examined as PW1, along with his brother Devendra Lal after attending the marriage ceremony of one Pooran Chandra in Village Dhapla within the limits of Police Station Kaladhungi, District Nainital, were returning home. On their way, they found the accused Jeewan Ram, Dalip and Kamal, all residents of their village, standing there. Jeewan was carrying a knife while Kamal and Dalip were armed with sticks (danda). Accused Kamal and Dalip caught hold of Devendra while Jeewan struck several blows with knife on his chest and abdomen. PW1 was carrying torch and saw the occurrence in that light. Two more persons, Rajendra Singh, PW2 and Prem Ram, PW3, who after attending the marriage were taking rest in the nearby house of Shyam Lal, upon hearing the alarm raised by Devendra Lal, reached the place of occurrence. In the light of the torches they were carrying, they witnessed the accused committing the crime. Upon hearing the alarm raised by Devendra, these witnesses saw the accused persons running away, however, they did not chase them out of fear.

(3.) Devendra Lal, was immediately taken to a hospital in Haldwani where he succumbed to his injuries. At about 8.45 a.m., on 13th March, 1991 Bhupal Chandra, PW1, lodged the First Information Report (for short, the 'FIR') against the three accused persons at Police Station Kaladhungi and a crime case No. 68 of 1991 was accordingly registered under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (for short, the 'IPC') against all the three accused persons. In the First Information Report, Ext. A1, the complainant stated that the motive for commission of crime by the accused was previous enmity between the parties. According to him, during Deepawali festival, the accused persons along with Devendra Lal were playing cards and gambling, when they picked up a quarrel and there was a scuffle between the parties. The scuffle did not aggravate into any serious situation because of intervention by Sabhapati, the head-man of the village. Though, he got the matter compromised, the three accused continued to harbour enmity and even threatened Devendra Lal to see him later.