BHAKLA AND RAMADHIN Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by special leave from an Order of conviction and sentence passed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court reversing the order of acquittal recorded by the Court of Session, Raipur.

(2.) The appellants were charged for the murder of Moujiram who was formerly the Malguzar of village Puran, Tahsil Baloda Bazar. At the time of the incident he was living with his wife in his Wada in the village, his children being away. The appellants are residents of village Puran and they had a dispute with Moujiram over the waters of a natural stream flowing in the village. He had filed a suit in 1962 in the Court of the Civil Judge, Baloda Bazar, for a permanent injunction to restrain some 11 cultivators from diverting the water of the stream to their own lands. Some five or six of the accused were parties to the suit. The suit ended in favour Moujiram and an appeal filed against the decision was pending in the District Court.

(3.) Moujiram had extensive cultivation in the village and on the day in question i.e. Friday 21-10-1966 he had engaged three labourers in his land for the ploughing and sowing operations. These labourers were Pancharam, P. W. 1, Dukhu, P. W. 2 and Sukhu, P. W. 3. In the afternoon of that day when these labourers were ploughing the field, Moujiram came there in order to supervise the operations. That was at about 3.00 or 3.30 P. M. After he had a talk with the labourers he went to the boundary of the field and sat below a Pipal tree which was on the Medh or bund. Shortly thereafter he was joined by Sadaram, P. W. 4 and the latter's son-in-law Kartik. While they were chitchatting accused no. 1. Bhahla and accused no 2 Sonsai came suddenly from behind the Pipal tree with sticks in their hands. Accused no. 1 gave a stick blow on the nape of the neck and when Moujiram turned to ask, who he was, accused no. 2 Sonsai gave a blow on his head with the result that Moujiram fell on the ground and rolled down to the field. In the meantime the other accused also came from the Eastern and Western directions and joined the first two accused in an attack with lathis. Sadaram, P. W. 4 and Kartik and so also the labourers begged the assailants not to beat Moujiram. But they were threatened. They were asked to go away instantly. Accordingly they went away. The labourers, however, first went to the ploughs because the bullocks had to be unyoked before leaving the place. As they ran away, they turned back to see what was happening. They was the assault was going on and actually one of the accused namely accused no. 2 doing something near the neck of Moujiram with a sickle.