PRABIR MONDAL Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) The appellants herein and one Mongal Das were tried for an offence punishable under Section 307/34 Indian Penal Code in Sessions Trial No.2 of March 1987 arising out of a First Information Report lodged with Berhampore Police Station in the District of Murshidabad, West Bengal. The learned Sessions Judge convicted the three accused under Section 307/34 I.P.C. and sentenced each of them to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 10 years and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/-, and, in default, to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one more year.

(3.) Aggrieved by the judgment of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Sessions Judge, the appellants, along with Mongal Das, filed an appeal before the High Court, being C.R.A.No.343/87. By its judgment dated 30th June, 2008, the High Court dismissed the appeal and confirmed the judgment of the learned Sessions Judge. Although, there were no eye-witnesses to the incident and the conviction was based on circumstantial evidence, the High Court was of the view that the circumstantial evidence, and in particular, the evidence of the victim would conclusively show that the accused were involved in the incident. Even the fact that the victim had not informed the doctor, who was examined as "P.W.7", as to how the incident had happened, was not given much importance by the High Court.