SUNIL SINGH ALIAS SONU Vs. STATE OF CHHATTISGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE above criminal appeals are being disposed of by this common judgment as all these appeals arise out of the judgment dated 25-6-2001 passed by First Additional Sessions Judge, Rajnandgaon in S.T. No. 132/98 whereby the learned Additional Sessions Judge after holding the accused/appellants guilty under Sections 364, 365, 506-II and 395 of the Indian Penal Code, sentenced each of them to undergo RI for five years and pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/-, RI for three years and pay a fine of Rs. 500/-, RI for three years and pay a fine of Rs. 500/- and life imprisonment and pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/- respectively and in the event of default of payment of fine to further undergo RI for two months for default in payment of Rs. 500/- each in the multiple, respectively. All the sentences were directed to run concurrently.

(2.) CASE of the prosecution in brief is that on 16-5-1998 a Bus bearing registration No. M.P. 23-J/0409 proceeded from Raipur to Nagpur at about 10.30 p.m. Apart from bus driver Dhanendra Kurve, conductor Kamal Narayan Tiwari, helper Mukesh and 44 passengers were travelling by the bus. 45 minutes past mid night when the bus reached near octroi post some 4 km away from Rajnandgaon, two passengers sitting in the bus went near the driver and directed him to drive the bus slowly on the gun point and others started beating the passengers. The driver was compelled to divert the bus on a kachcha road beside the Nala. Thereafter, they asked the driver to take the bus inside the Nala where the bus got jammed. Six persons were inside the bus and 5-6 other persons were already present near the Nala. They started looting the bus and in the process they looted the V.C.P., cassettes, wrist watch of the helper Mukesh, cash of Rs. 4,510/- from the conductor, silver ring, watch and Rs. 250/- from the driver and the luggage of the passengers from the dickey. After completing robbery they took the key of the bus from the driver and locked the passengers and the driver in the bus, deflated the tyre of the bus and threatened them not to report. The driver of the bus Dhanendra Kurve lodged a report of the incident at about 1.45 a.m. on 17-5-1998 whereupon Crime No. 253/98 under Section 395 of the IPC and Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act was registered. Alert was sounded through the area and boundaries were sealed.

(3.) TEST identification of the seized articles was conducted by Shrikant Verma, Executive Magistrate (P.W. 22) vide Exh. P-6 on 3-6-98, Exh. P-7 on 29-5-98, Exh. P-8 on 20-5-98, Exh. P-9 on 20-5-98, Exh. P-10 on 3-6-98, Exh. P-11 on 20-5-98, Exh. P-12 on 11-6-98 and Exh. P-16 on 20-6-98, where the witnesses identified the articles. TEST identification parade was conducted by the Executive Magistrate on 12-6-98 in Sub-jail Rajnandgaon vide Exhs. P-1 and P-2 of the accused persons where Kamal Narayan Tiwari, Mukesh Kumar Manikpuri and Dhanendra Kurve identified the accused persons. On the same day identification of the seized V.C.R. was conducted and they identified the same vide Exh. P-3. All the accused persons were arrested on 17-5-98 at about 5 past 17 hours.