DHARAM VEER Vs. STATE OF UTTRAKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) APPELLANTS Dharam Veer (A1), Mewa Ram (A2), Mahender (A3) and Ravinder (A4) (all real brothers and son of Shiv Lal) have challenged the impugned judgment and order of conviction -dated 01.08.2003 recorded by learned Additional Sessions Judge, Udham Singh Nagar in Sessions Trial No.196/2000. They were tried for the offence of section 307 IPC but the learned Judge attributed the guilt under Section 324 IPC against A1 and A2 and u/s 324/34 IPC against A3 and A4. The trial pertains to the crime no.233 of 2004 at Police Station Rudrapur. They were sentenced for two years' rigorous imprisonment.

(2.) THE informant and the injured as well as the accused persons are the residents of Adarsh Colony in town Rudrapur. The animosity was persisting between them as has been highlighted by Raj Pal Singh (PW1) in his statement. On 13.03.2000 at around 7:30 P.M., PW1 was going to give Tiffin to his father. PW1, while passing in front of kiosk of A2 (who used to work as a cobbler and prepare new shoes), was got surrounded by all the four accused brothers and made to fell him down on the earth. A3 and A4 caught hold of arms and feet of PW1 while A1 and A2 inflicted five injuries with a sharp edged object RAPI (used by cobblers for repairing the shoes). PW1 was thus, wounded. He raised an alarm. Hearing his screams, Ramvir and Khayali Ram rushed to his rescue and challenged the accused persons. Seeing the arrival of the witnesses, the assailants fled away from the spot. Informant Naresh Kumar, who also had come at the spot, took the injured to the hospital. The F.I.R. was lodged quickly within half an hour of the incident, while the Police Station is one and half kilometers away from the place of occurrence. Chargesheet was submitted by the Police against all the four accused persons for the offence of section 307 IPC. They were, accordingly, charged by the learned Trial Judge and were put to trial.

(3.) HOWEVER , no supplementary report has been brought on the record. PW2 Naresh Kumar is the informant who arrived on the spot hearing the shouting of his brother (PW1). He has corroborated the version of PW1. In the opinion of this Court, there is no material contradiction to disbelieve the version of both these witnesses, out of whom PW1 himself is the injured. It is a well -settled proposition of law that even the testimony of the injured witness, coupled with the proved medical report, can be made the sole basis for conviction of the accused persons.