SITA RAM Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant Sita Ram, said to be munshi of an advocate and aged about 24 years, has preferred this appeal against his conviction under section 302 Indian Penal Code, he having been awarded the lesser sentence of rigorous imprisonment for life. Three other persons Lal Chand (said to be aged 19 years), a scooter rickshaw driver Hari Krishan and another Harbhajan Singh (both of them said to be 21 years) who were charged under section 302 read with section 34 Indian Penal Code in connection with the alleged murder of Jawahar Lal (said to be aged 19 or 20 years), were acquitted by the learned Sessions Judge, Delhi, who tried the case.

(2.) The prosecution case, briefly stated, is that the deceased Jawahar Lal had a love affair with a girl, named Sheela, daughter of Chuni Lal, who lived in Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi. The deceased and his brother Raj Kumar (Public Witness I) worked along with their father Dina Nath (Public Witness 26) who runs the Gupta Restaurant at Wazir Nagar, near Defence Colony, New Delhi.

(3.) The deceased Jawahar Lal was known to the appellant and to the other three accused, who were acquitted, all of whom used to visit the house of the appellant. Since Chuni Lal did not approve of his daughter being friendly with Jawahar Lal there was some misunderstanding leading to an assault on Chuni Lal who filed a complaint against the deceased Jawahar Lal under section 324 Indian Penal Code; the deceased was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for one month. Sheela's marriage to another person took place about a month prior to the occurrence; even subsequently Jawahar Lal continued to follow Sheela and this was naturally resented by her father Chuni Lal.