STATE OF KERALA Vs. K. M. IDDINKUNHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) STATE filed appeal against the order of acquittal of the accused, six in number (respondents herein) by the Court of Sessions, Kasaragod in S.C. No. 66/95. Revision application was filed by PW 2 in the above case for the very same purpose. Respondents and seven others who were the accused in Grime No. 22/94 of the Kumbla Police Station were originally tried for offences punishable under S.143, 147, 148, 324, 307 and 302 read with S.149 of the Indian Penal Code. The Trial Court found the respondents herein guilty of the offences alleged against them and the remaining accused were acquitted; Against the conviction of the respondents, Crl. Appeal No. 391/96 was filed before this Court. The acquittal of the remaining accused also was challenged by PW 2 in this ease by filing Crl. R. P. No. 1115/96. By a common judgment in the above cases, this Court confirmed the acquittal of accused Nos. 7 to 13 in the case and remanded the case against the respondents herein foe fresh disposal.

(2.) THE prosecution case as deposed by PWs 1, 2 and 5 and other witnesses is as follows: PW 5 Moosa Haji and some of his close relatives became believers of Shemsia Thareequat sect. Large majority of the Muslim community in the area considered them as heretics. Local Jama-ath did not tolerate the followers of Thareequat movement and ex-communicated PW 5 and others. There was frequent friction and fight between the two groups. Orthodox Muslims which formed the large majority of the area were led to believe that those who oppose or annihilate people like PW 5 and others who joined the Thareequat movement will get "]pWyw". They were thus socially boycotted and local Muslims were not allowed to talk to them or sell goods to them. Nobody should work for them or mingle with them. On account of these social boycotting (Ducphne¡v) PW 5 and others were unable to get workers to work for them. This had compelled them to get workers from outside. PW 1, Chandrasekhara, was thus brought by PW 5 for doing various works from Ubradka, Mittur, Karnataka State and the deceased Faizal from Manjeri Because of the threat of other people of the Jama-ath, both PW 1 and deceased Faizal were residing in the house of PW 5.

(3.) WHEN they reached near, the accused suddenly attacked PWs 1, 2 and Faizal. A1 had MO 1 knife in his possession and A2 to A6 also had knives with them. A7 to A13 were in possession of sticks like MO 2. A1 to A4, with the weapons in their hands, inflicted cuts on the neck of Faizal. When PW 2 intervened A2, A3, A5 and A6 attacked PW 2 with weapons in their possession. Because of the severity of the injury suffered by Faizal, he fell down. A1 to A6 had again attacked Faizal who was lying down by inflicting cut injuries on his body. The other accused had beaten Faizal and PW 2 with sticks. The accused were shouting to do away with PW 2 and Faizal. PW 1 to save his life jumped from the higher level of the ridge to the lower lever and took shelter to the house of CW 9. Seeing that PW 1 was fleeing the scene, some of the accused chased PW 1, but could not catch him. Meanwhile, PW 2 who suffered injuries also ran for his life and reached the house of CW 9. As Faizal did not reach the house of CW 9, PW 1 along with a son of CW 9 went to the scene of occurrence and saw that Faizal was lying dead in the paddy field.