STATE OF GUJARAT Vs. ZAVERBHAI KABABHAI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Mr. S. R. Divetia, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, appearing for the petitioner-State requests to convert this application into Criminal Revision Application. Request granted.

(2.) The neat question of law that arises in this Criminal Revision Application is whether the respondent, who was already undergoing a sentence of imprisonment, could be sentenced to suffer the imprisonment imposed on a subsequent conviction, concurrently or consecutively.

(3.) The relevant facts giving rise to the petition may be stated thus : The respondent-accused was convicted for the offence under Sec. 376 of the Indian Penal Code and was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a term of seven years in the Sessions Case No. 29 of 1982 of the Court of the learned Assistant Judge, Rajkot at Gondal. Thereafter, the petitioner was also convicted for the offence under Sec. 376 of the Indian Penal Code and other offences of the Indian Penal Code in Sessions Case No. 69 of 1982 by the learned Assistant Sessions Judge, Rajkot District at Gondal and was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1000.00, in deault to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year. In the said Sessions Case No. 69 of 1982, the respondentaccused was also convicted for the offences under Sec. 363, 367 and 452 of the Indian Penal Code and was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year and two years respectively for the said offences. The respondent was also convicted and sentenced under Sec. 25 of the Indian Arms Act and was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for six months for the said offences. All these sentences were ordered to run concurrently. The learned Judge had ordered to pay Rs. 500/- to the prosecutrix, out of the amount of the fine. It appears that the other three accused persons were acquitted in the said Sessions Case. The learned Assistant Sessions Judge, Rajkot District at Gondal, passed the aforesaid order of conviction and sentence on August 27, 1984.