STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH Vs. N VENUGOPAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The three respondents, Venugopal, Rangaswamy and Subbaiah were tried along with one Mittala Kamal Sab by the Session Judge, Anantapur Division, on a number of charges. Kamal Sab was acquitted of all the charges against him, but these three respondents were convicted of several offences. All three of them were convicted under Ss. 348, 331, and 201 read with S. 109 of the Indian Penal Code. Venugopal was further convicted under S. 343 of the Indian Penal Code. For the offence under S. 348 the respondents were sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for two years; for the offence under S. 331 of the Indian Penal Code each of them was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for five years; for the offence under S. 201 read with S. 109 of the Indian Penal Code they were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for three years each. Venugopal was sentenced to one year's rigorous imprisonment under S. 343 of the Indian Penal Code. All of them were acquitted of the charge under S. 302 read with S. 34 of the Indian Penal Code. The sentences imposed on them were directed to run concurrently. These orders of conviction and sentence were set aside by the High Court of Andhra Pradesh in appeal and the three respondents have been acquitted of all the charges. Against that decision the State of Andhra Pradesh has filed the present appeal after obtaining special leave from this Court.

(2.) Of the three respondents, Venugopal was the Sub-Inspector of Police, Vempalli police Station, in Cuddapah District from July 20, 1956 to February 22, 1957; Rangaswamy was a Head Constable attached to the same police station from May 4, 1955 to February 20, 1957; Subbaiah was a Police Constable at that police station from April 10, 1955 to February 20, 1957. On July 21, 1952 Mittala Kamal Sab, a resident of Vempalli town lodged at the Vempalli police station an information of housebreaking and theft in his house. After investigation a charge-sheet was submitted by the police against one Patra Obanna and three other persons. Those three were arrested and tried and convicted on October 31, 1952; but Patra Obanna remained absconding and the case against him remained pending in the Magistrate's Court. After sometime the Magistrate wrote to the District Superintendent of Police of Anantpur, requesting him either to withdraw the case or to try and arrest Patra Obanna.

(3.) Thereafter, Venugopal, who was then the Vempalli Sub-Inspector of Police, took action in this matter and his attempt to arrest Patra Obanna met with success. Patra Obanna was actually arrested on January 6, 1957. On the same date on being informed by him that he had given the gold gajjalu which formed part of the stolen property to a person in Kadiri Taluk, Venugopal proceeded to Kadiri police station. On the night of January 6, Venugopal, accompanied by Constables of the Kadiri police station and Rangaswamy and Subbiah, who had come with him to Kadiri went to Dasaravandlapalli in Gandlapenta police station and there on the identification of Patra Obanna as the person to whom he had given the gold gajjalu took one Arige Ramanna into custody. The police party then returned with Arige Ramanna to Kadiri police station. Less than three days later Arige Ramanna was found lying dead not far from the house of one Sugali Baginigadu, in Udamulagutta Thanda, in Kadiri village. There were a number of injuries on the body. The prosecution case is that these injuries had been caused by the three respondents acting in concert for the purpose of extorting from him information which might lead to the detection of an offence and restoration of stolen property. It is also the prosecution case that for this purpose these three respondents wrongfully confined Arige Ramanna in a room at the Kadiri police station and it was there when he was thus confined that the injuries were caused. The prosecution case further is that when after infliction of the injuries Arige Ramanna appeared to be in a bad state these respondents had him removed from the police station and his body thrown at the place where it was ultimately found with the intention of screening themselves from punishment.