SANTOSHSINGH NARENDRASINH CHOUHAN Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Present appeals assail the judgment and order dated 05/09/2008, passed by the learned Additional City Sessions Judge, Court No. 4, Ahmedabad in Sessions Case Nos. 65 and 66 of 2005, whereby, all the accused came to be convicted for the offence punishable under Section 302 r/w. 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for brevity, 'the IPC') and sentenced to undergo life imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 20,000/- each and in default of payment of fine, to undergo further simple imprisonment for one year. The accused were further directed to pay the compensation in the sum of Rs. 50,000/- each to the children of the deceased with default clause to attach the property of the accused to recover such amount, if failed to pay. Accordingly, present appeals have been filed by the original accused in both the Sessions Cases viz. Sessions Case Nos. 65 and 66 of 2005, against conviction.

(2.) Since both these appeals arise out from the common judgment and order in Sessions Case Nos. 65 and 66 of 2005, they are heard and being decided together.

(3.) Filtering the unnecessary details, the facts of the prosecution case are that on 16/09/2000, at about 10:00 p.m. when deceased Ramsevak @ Kalio Musaisinh Rajput, resident of Shrinathnagar, Bhilwada, Amraiwadi, Nr. Ghanti Bus-stand, was sitting in an open place near his house, at about 10:30 p.m., accused namely Ranvirsinh, Jagdish Kaluji and Santoshsingh allegedly came there possessing with them the deadly weapons like gupti and wooden sticks; they caught hold the deceased and dragged him to Mashruara Chali; threatened the people gathered there of bitter consequences; meanwhile, the other accused also reached there; the accused then assaulted the deceased with the weapons they possessed due to which, the deceased sustained severe injuries and ultimately, succumbed to the injuries and thereby, they committed the offence alleged against them, for which a complaint came to be lodged.