HEMCHAND JHA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Appellant questions the legality of the judgment rendered by Division Bench of the Patna High Court dismissing the appeals filed by the appellant and one Kripal Singh. Latter was convicted for offences punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short the IPC) and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for life and was further convicted for offences punishable under the Arms Act. The present appellant was convicted for offence punishable under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC. He was sentenced to undergo impris onment for life.

(2.) The trial Court directed acquittal of the accused Sanjay Singh who faced trial with them while finding the appellants before the High Court to be guilty.

(3.) Prosecution version in a nutshell is as follows : Gyaneshwar Prasad Singh, the informant, gave a written report to the police on 5-6-1991 at 4.15 p.m. that Mithilesh Kumar Singh, Krishna Kumar Singh (hereinafter referred to as the deceased) and Krishna Dubey proceeded to village Nawadih in a jeep bearing No. ORC 9827 to attend the marriage of his nephew. At about 2.30 p.m. the jeep was stopped at Rabindra Petrol Pump for taking petrol. Petrol was taken. In the meantime accused Kripal Singh, Hemchand Jha and one person whom he iden tified by face came on a black Rajdoot motor cycle and stopped the motor cycle on the right side of the jeep. Appellant Hemchand Jha was driving the motor cycle. They got down from the motor cycle and went behind the petrol pump. Krishna Singh was capping the petrol tanki. The aforesaid three persons came near him. Kripal Singh came close to Krishna Singh, took out a pistol and fired near the ear of Krishna Singh. Krishna Singh fell down on the ground and started shaking because of unbearable pain. Mithilesh Singh and Krishna Dubey tried to apprehend them but the third person whom he identified by face took out pistol from the waist and threatened to kill if they proceeded further. All the three accused persons ran away towards west on the bye pass road on the motor cycle. The witnesses took Krishna Singh on the said jeep to Aurangabad hospital for treatment where he died. Many persons had seen the occurrence. On the basis of the aforesaid written report a formal first information report was drawn, investigation was taken up and on completion of investigation charge sheet was submitted in the Court against three persons. The Court where same was filed, took cognizance and committed the case to the Court of Session for trial. The de fence of the appellants was that they were innocent and were falsely implicated in the case. Ten witnesses were examined to further the prosecution case, out of them PWs. 1, 2 and 3 claimed to be eye-witnesses. Placing reliance on the statement of the aforesaid three eye-witnesses, the trial Court found the accused appellant guilty and sentenced them. But Sanjay Singh was acquitted. The appeals filed by Kripal Singh and the present appellant, before the High Court, were dismissed. In Supplort of the appeal learned counsel for the Appellant submitted that no definite role has been ascribed to the appellant. According to the prosecution, it was Kripal Singh who had fired the gun and killed the deceased. According to him Sec tion 34 IPC has no application. Learned counsel for the State on the other hand Supplorted the judgment.