SOMALINGA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Accused No.5 against whom the case was split up before the Court below, having suffered an order of conviction for offences punishable under Sections 147 , 148 , 447 , 307 and 302 read with Section 149 of the India Penal Code, 1860 (for short ' IPC '), in S.C.No.67/2009 before the Fast Track Court-II, Bhalki, has come up with this appeal before this Court.

(2.) Accused No.5, who will herein after be referred to as the appellant, is the son of accused No.1 - Umakanth and accused No.2 - Parvathibai @ Padminibai. The two other accused in the case were accused No.3 - Gurunath and accused No4 - Ramling are his brothers. Since the appellant had remained absconding, accused Nos.1 to 4 were tried separately before the learned Principal Sessions Judge, Bidar in S.C.No.56/2000 and by a judgment dated 16.09.2004 they were all convicted for the offences punishable under Sections 147 , 148 , 447 , 307 and 302 read with Section 149 of IPC and they were sentenced for the said offences accordingly. They preferred an appeal before this Court in Criminal Appeal No.1468/2004 and by judgment dated 22.10.2007, the appeal came to be dismissed and the judgment of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Principal Sessions Judge, Bidar as against them was confirmed. Later, on 29.03.2009, the appellant was arrested and he was remanded and thereafter a charge sheet was filed against him and he faced trial before the learned Fast Track Court-II, Bhalki in S.C.No.67/2009 which ended in his conviction as noted above.

(3.) The gist of the prosecution case is that deceased Beerappa was the owner of about 16 acres of land in Survey No.388 of Mehkar village of Bhalki taluka and he was cultivating the same along with his children. Accused Nos.1 to 4 and the present appellant were objecting to the cultivation of the said land by the deceased Beerappa and they were also quarreling with him. There was a civil litigation also between both the parties in regard to the said land. On 18.12.1999, at about 2.00 p.m., when deceased Beerappa, his son Prabhakar (deceased), his other children PW.2 - Tatyrao, PW.7 - Rangarao and other members of the family were working in the field in Survey No.388 removing weed etc., accused No.1 to 4 and the appellant went there forming themselves into an unlawful assembly being armed with Jambia, sickle, axe and kamakatti, and started assaulting Beerappa with the same and when deceased Prabhakar went to his rescue they assaulted him as well with deadly weapons and further when PW.7 - Rangarao went to their rescue, accused assaulted him as well causing him serious injuries, with the result, both Beerappa and Prabhakar died instantaneously in the spot itself and PW.7 was shifted to the hospital with the injuries and he survived.