STATE Vs. RAM SWAROOP

JUDGEMENT

(1.) D. K. Trivedi, J. The present Criminal Appeal has been filed by the State of U. P. challenging the judgment and order dated 22-12-1979 passed by the II Additional Sessions Judge, Hardoi, acquitting the accused respondents from the charges levelled against them holding that the prosecution has failed to prove the guilt of the respondents beyond reasonable doubt. The respondents were prosecuted under Sections 147, 148, 302, 302/149 I. P. C.

(2.) ACCORDING to the prosecution case the incident took place on 21-10-1977 at about 8 a. m. at the tube- well of Munedra Singh in village Hadha Police Station Atrauli, District Hardoi. It is said that respondent Ram Swaroop was armed with DBBL gun, Raj Kumar was armed with single barrel gun, respondent Ram Kumar had a gun and respondents Krishna Kumar, Braj Kumar and Sheo Kumar had Lathis in their hands and Sheo Murti was empty handed. It is said that Kareem Darzi had executed a sale-deed in favour of Ram Swaroop. It is said that in the said house one Nawab Darzi nephew of Kareem was living and he did not vacate the same. It is said that as Nawab did not vacate the premises, therefore, there was some criminal case relating to arson between Nawab and Ram Swaroop. It is said that in the said case Rudra Baksh Singh (deceased) had stood surety to Nawab and due to this enmity Ram Swaroop bore ill-will against Rudra Baksh Singh. It is said that on the date of incident at about 8. 00 a. m. complainant Yadvendra Pratap Singh along with his father deceased Rudra Baksh Singh reached the tube-well of Munedra Singh. The respondents armed with the weapons as aforesaid, reached there and on the instigation of Sheo Murti, all the three persons namely Ram Swaroop, Ram Kumar and Raj Kumar fired their licensed fire-arms on Rudra Baksh Singh. It is said that the three other respondents who were armed with Lathis started assaulting Rudra Baksh Singh with their respective Lathis. An alarm was raised by the witnesses and on hearing the alarm several persons reached there and on their challenge the accused-respondents ran away. It is further alleged that complainant Yadvendra Pratap Singh also received injuries of fire-arm on his right hand. As the deceased was lying, therefore a cot was brought and he was placed on the said cot and the complainant proceeded to the Police Station but just in the way Rudra Baksh Singh succumbed to his injuries. The complainant thereafter lodged a written report at Police Station Atrauli the same day at about 12-10 p. m. (noon ). The distance of the Police Station from the place of incident is about eight and a half miles. As the report was lodged in the presence of P. W. 4 S. I. Noor Mohammad, therefore, the investigation of the case was entrusted to him. He immediately prepared the Panchayatnama of the dead body of the deceased Rudra Baksh Singh Ext. Ka-6 and other relevant papers Ext. Ka-7 to Ka-10 and sent the body of the deceased to the mortuary for post-mortem examination. He thereafter recorded the statements of the witnesses of Panchayatnama and thereafter reached the place of the incident at about 5. 00 p. m. The next day he recorded the statements of some of the witnesses and collected blood-stained and plain earth from the place of the incident. He also recovered empty cartridges Ext. 5 and 6 and prepared site-plan Ext. Ka-12. The Investigating Officer thereafter tried to search out the accused persons but they were not found in their houses. On 2-1-1977 he again visited village Hadha and then he recorded the statement of the complainant Yadvendra Pratap Singh and thereafter on 3-11-1977 he arrested Ram Swaroop, Sheo Kumar, Braj Kumar, Ram Kumar and Sheo Murat. On 29-11-1977 S. O. , B. K. Singh took over the investigation in his hand and after completing the same, he submitted charge-sheet against the accused persons.

(3.) THE prosecution, in support of its case, examined ten witnesses, out of them P. W. 1 Yadvendra Pratap Singh and P. W. 2 Rohan are the witnesses of fact. P. W. 3 H. C. , Baij Nath Shukla registered the case and prepared chik report etc. P. W. 4, S. I. , Noor Mohammad conducted the main investigation in this case. P. W. 5 Constable Sheo Bahdur brought the dead body of the deceased to the deceased to the Mortuary for post-mortem examination. P. W. 6 Constable Sant Bali Yadav proved the Malkhana entries, P. W. 7 Constable Ved Prakash Singh brought the articles from the Malkhana to the Court. P. W. 8 Dr. J. K. Verma conducted X-ray of the injured witness P. W. 9, Dr. A. N. Singh conducted autopsy on the dead body of the deceased and proved the post-mortem report Ext. Ka-17. , P. W. 10 Dr. Om Mehrotra examined the injuries of Yadvendra Pratap Singh on 21-10-1977 at about 6. 30 p. m. and proved the injury report Ext. Ka-18.