ABID Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant has filed the present appeal impugning a judgment dated 07.05.2016 passed by the Ld. ASJ, Karkardooma Courts (hereafter 'the impugned judgment'), whereby the appellant was convicted for committing offences under Sections 392/397 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) for stealing a mobile phone while using a deadly weapon, i.e. knife. The appellant also impugns an order on sentence dated 12.05.2016, whereby the appellant was sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 397 of the IPC.

(2.) The appellant has challenged the judgment, inter alia, on the ground that the knife found in the possession of the appellant is not a 'deadly weapon', since it was not intended to be used by the appellant as a deadly weapon. Merely possessing a knife was not enough to attract the offence under Section 397 of the IPC. In the present case, the prosecution had failed to prove that the appellant had used the knife in his possession as a 'deadly weapon'.

(3.) The present case arises from FIR bearing no. 536/2015, under Sections 392/397/379/506/411 of the IPC, registered with PS Bhajanpura. The case of the prosecution is that on 21.04.2015, at about 12:20 pm, at Shop No. A-131, Main Yamuna Vihar Road, near Bada School Delhi, the appellant had committed theft of one black mobile phone (make QMI Model M7) belonging to one Suhaib. Suhaib had put his phone on charging inside the said shop. The appellant tried to escape along with the phone from the spot. When Suhaib tried to stop him, the appellant pointed a knife at him. Thereafter, Suhaib raised an alarm and public persons tried stopping the appellant. The appellant waved his knife/churri towards the public persons also. The public chased him and managed to apprehend him. The stolen mobile phone and the knife were recovered from the possession of the appellant. The appellant was thereafter arrested by the police and a chargesheet was filed under Sections 392/397/411 of the IPC.