GULAB AND ORS Vs. STATE AND ORS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants (hereafter called by their names, Sudama and Gulab) impugn a judgment and order of the Additional Sessions Judge, Delhi, dated 21.02.1998 in FIR No.106/1995, whereby they were convicted of the offence punishable under Section 302/34 IPC. They were sentenced to undergo life imprisonment and fined a sum of ' 2,000 each. In default of payment of fine the convicts would further undergo rigorous imprisonment for 6 months each.

(2.) The Prosecution' s case is that on the night intervening 27/28-4-1995, information regarding a quarrel was received at the Police Station, Rohini. The SHO, along with a few other police men reached the Rajiv Jhuggi camp, Ahimsa Marg, where it had taken place. When they reached the spot, PW-3 Haliman the deceased' s wife, and a few others had brought back her husband' s body in a three wheeler, after having taken it to Shree Balaji Hospital, where the doctors had declared him dead. She then met the SHO and her statement was recorded; an inquest over the dead body was performed, and the body was sent for post mortem. The facts recorded were that, PW-3 and her husband were walking back home after shutting shop, when they saw the two appellants at Rajiv Chowk. They asked her husband to consume liquor with them but he refused. This led to a quarrel, and in the course of the altercation, Sudama gave her husband lathi blows on his head and leg, and Gulab gave him a knife blow on his chest. She started screaming for help ( Bachao! Bachao! ). On hearing her screams, PW-2 (Jaan Mohammed) and PW-4 (Mohammed Shamim) reached the spot. She says that the two accused ran away as soon as she started screaming for help. She, along with the persons gathered there, took her husband to the hospital, where he was declared dead. Then they brought the body back to the jhuggi, by which time the police too had arrived.

(3.) On 28-4-1995, the police received information that the accused Sudama could be found in the jhuggi near Jaipur Golden Hospital. The police team, along with PW- 2 reached the jhuggi, where on the basis of information already received, and also the identification of the accused by PW-2, he was arrested at around 6.30 PM. On being interrogated, Sudama revealed that he had hidden the seru used in the attack, in some bushes behind Shakti Apartment (his disclosure statement was marked as Ex. PW-6/C during the trial). He was taken to the place by the police, and he went into the bushes and recovered the Seru which was about three feet long and blood stained. Then Sudama was brought to the spot of occurrence of the incident and asked to show where the incident took place, which he did. Thereafter, the SHO recorded the statements of Jaan Mohd (PW-2).