DHARAM PAL Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The four appellants Daryao Singh aged 46 years, Birbal aged 50 years. Dharam Pal aged 29 years and Om Pal aged 25 years, were tried along with 14 others, for the offence of rioting in the course of which two murders were committed, on 7-6-1967 at about 6-30 a.m. on a path adjoining the field of the appellant Daryas Singh leading to village Parsoli from village Nirpura in Police Station Doghat, in the District of Meerut. The trial Court acquitted eleven accused persons giving them the benefit of doubt and convicted seven including the four appellants. Each of the accused persons was charged and convicted under Section 302, read with Section 149, Indian Penal Code and sentenced to life imprisonment, in addition to charges and convictions under Sections 149/324 and 149/34. I. P. C. and either under Section 147 or Section 148, I. P. C. depending upon the weapon alleged to have been used by an accused person.

(2.) The prosecution case revealed a long standing enmity between two groups of village Nirpura:one to which the appellants belonged and another to which Mukhtara and Raghubir, the murdered men, and the four other injured persons belonged. As is not unusual, the origin of the hostility between the two sides seems to have been a dispute over cultivable land between collaterals who had some joint Khatas. Asa Ram. P. W. 1. claimed to be in separate possession of some plots with his two brothers, including Raghubira (murdered). and his uncle Mukhtara (murdered). It was alleged by Asa Ram (P. W. 1 ) that Daryao Singh appellant wanted to take forcible possession of some land cultivated by him. Daryao Singh and others had already filed a partition suit which was pending at the time of the occurrence. It appears that Hargyan the father of the appellant Daryao, a first cousin of Mukhtara, the murdered man, had also been murdered (sic ) dispute. Asa Ram (P. W. 1), and Raghubira (deceased), Bija (P. W. 10) and Asghar (P. W. 4) had been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. They had been released on parole after five years' imprisonment.

(3.) On the date of occurrence, Mukhtara, the murdered man, was said to be proceeding with Raghubir, who was also murdered, and Asa Ram, P. W. 1. and Bija. P. W. 10, all sitting in a buggi driven by Asghar, P. W. 4. and Smt. Jahani, P. W. 3. the wife of Asa Ram P. W, 1, was said to be following the buggi at a short distance with some food for the party. When this buggi reached the field of Daryao Singh, where a number of persons, said to be eighteen altogether, whose names are mentioned in the first Information Report lodged at Police Station Doghat at a distance of three miles from village Nirpura at 8.30 a. m., were sitting on the boundary. These persons are alleged to have surrounded the buggi and attacked its occupants with balams and lathies shouting that the whole party in the buggi should be killed. Five occupants of the buggi, and, after that Smt. Jahani, who soon joined them were injured. Two of them, Mukhtara and Raghubir, died very soon after the attack. It was alleged that Dharam Pal, Birbal and Daryao, appellants, and Naihar, Ajab Singh, and Ram Kishan, acquitted persons, were armed with balams, one Salek Chand was armed with a spade, and the rest with lathis. A number of witnesses are said to have arrived in response to the shouts of the injured occupants of the buggi. The following injuries are shown to have been sustained by the victims of the attack: