AMAR SINGH Vs. BALWINDER SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal has been preferred by the complainant (first informant) against the judgment and order dated 26-9-1991 of High Court of Punjab and Haryana by which the appeal preferred by the accused-respondent was allowed and the judgment and order dated 28-7-1989 of Additional Sessions Judge, Sangrur by which they had been convicted and sentenced was set aside. The learned Additional Sessions Judge had convicted accused Surjit Singh under Section 302, IPC and the remaining three accused, namely, Blawinder Singh, Avtar Singh and Mal Singh under Section 302 read with Section 34, IPC and had sentenced each of them to imprisonment for life and a fine of Rs. 5,000/- and in default to undergo six months rigorous imprisonment. The accused were further convicted under Section 307, IPC and were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for four years and a fine of Rs. 500/- each and in default to undergo two months rigorous imprisonment. All the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

(2.) The case of the prosecution, in brief, is that at about 7.00 p.m. on 23-5-1987 the complainant, Amar Singh along with his sons Lakha Singh, Gurbachan Singh and Bhan Singh and two others namely, Kashmira Singh and Pritam Singh, was coming towards his outer house after having unloaded the trolley of wheat straw. When they were at a distance of about 5-6 Karams from the Baithak of Gurdial Singh, they saw that accused Balwinder Singh (A-1) and Avtar Singh (A-2), armed with SBBL guns and accused Surjit Singh (A-3) and Mal Singh (A-4) armed with DBBL guns were standing there. A-1 entered the Baithak and fired a shot towards them through the iron gauze of the window which hit Kashmira Singh. Surjit Singh (A-3) fired a shot which hit Lakha Singh on his face and left side of the neck and right hand and a second shot which hit Amar Singh. A-4 fired a shot which hit Bhan Singh and a second shot which hit Gurbachan Singh. A-2 fired a shot which hit Pritam Singh. Thereafter the accused ran away. Amar Singh then carried Lakha Singh to his outer house and all the injured persons also reached there. The injured persons were then taken to bus stand, Sangrur, in the tractor trolley of Major Singh, where they hired two taxies on which they proceeded to Christian Medical College, Ludhiana where they were admitted at about 11.30 p.m. on the same night. Lakha Singh succumbed to his injuries at about 8.00 a.m. on 24-5-1987. Information was then sent from the hospital to S.H.O. Division No. 3, Ludhiana and thereafter PW 14 Sardara Singh, S.I., Police Station, Sangrur came there and recorded the statement of Amar Singh. This was sent to PS, Sangrur through Jago Singh, Constable and a formal FIR was recorded at 9.20 p.m. After investigation, charge-sheet was submitted against the four accused-respondents and in due course they were committed to the Court of Sessions.

(3.) During the course of trial the prosecution examined in all 17 witnesses including three eye-witnesses of the occurrence and filed some documentary evidence. The accused in their statement under Section 313, Cr.P.C. denied the case of the prosecution and pleaded that they had been falsely implicated. The defence of A-3 was that there was some dispute regarding passage between Amar Singh and Sadhu Singh and in the said case his father had appeared as a witness against the former. He further pleaded that he had contested the election for the office of Sarpanch against Hari Singh in which A-1 was polling agent of Hari Singh and that A-1 was removed from service on his complaint regarding embezzlement. He thus submitted that he had strained relations with A-1 and A-2 and as such he could not have joined with them in the commission of the crime. The accused examined three witnesses, namely, DW-1 Sadhu Singh, DW-2 Ram Singh and DW-3 Pritam Singh in their defence.