PRITAM SINGH AND ORS. Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is directed against the order of the learned Sessions Judge, Saharanpur dt. 13 -1 -1969. The Appellant Pritam Singh was convicted Under Sec. 302 read with Sec. 149 IPC and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life. He was further convicted Under Sec. 323 read with Sec. 149 IPC and sentenced to three months' rigorous imprisonment and Under Sec. 148 IPC and sentenced to 18 month's rigorous imprisonment. The remaining Appellants were convicted Under Sec. 302 read with Sec. 149 IPC and sentenced to undergo life imprisonment each. They were further convicted Under Ss. 323 read with Ss. 149 IPC and 147 IPC and each of them was sentenced to three months' rigorous imprisonment and nine months' rigorous imprisonment respectively under those counts. The sentences awarded to the Appellants were directed to run concurrently.

(2.) The occurrence is alleged to have taken place on 20 -6 -1968 at 5.30 p.m. in village Sakoti, P.S. Manglaur in the distt. of Saharanpur. The person who lost his life was Sube Ram. The Appellants as well as the deceased were residents of the same village and they were connected inter se. Talab and Pritam Singh accused are brothers and Shera accused is the son of Raghubir accused. Rohtas accused is said to be the servant of Pritam Singh accused. Pritam Singh accused is alleged to have been armed with a spear whereas the other accused were armed with lathis. The houses of the deceased and Pritam Singh accused were situate close to each other. People visiting the gher of Pritam Singh were violating the privacy of the house of the deceased and his brother Vikram Singh. There was a small low wall between the house of the deceased and the gher of Pritam Singh. The latter was a history sheeter. It is alleged that bad characters used to visit his house. Sube Ram (deceased) took exception to it on the ground that respectable ladies were residing in the house. In fact, Pritam wanted to raise the height of the wall aforesaid but that would have caused obfuscation in the passage of the inmates of the house of Sube Ram. The latter therefore objected to the raising of the height of the wall. On 25 -2 -1968 at 9 p. m. there was a marpit between the parties A report was lodged by Sube Ram against Pritam Singh and Talab accused. On the next day at 8 a.m. Talab accused had also lodged a report about the same occurrence on the basis whereof he filed a complaint before the Magistrate. At the time of the present occurrence that complaint was pending in the court of the Magistrate. A date was fixed in that case and it is alleged that Sube Ram (deceased) tried to win over the witnesses of the complaint.

(3.) On 20 -6 -1968 Sube Ram and his brother Vikram Singh had gone to their sugarcane field for the purpose of winnowing. At about 5 -30 p.m. they were returning home. When they reached near the Kothri of Sita Ram all the five accused emerged out of the Kothri and started inflicting blows on Sube Ram and Vikram Singh. Pritam Singh was saying that he would teach Sube Ram a lesson for having beaten him. Vikram Singh ran to a distance of 10 or 12 paces and raised an alarm. In the meantime the five assailants concentrated their attention on Sube Ram and gave him repeated blows. The alarm raised by Vikram Singh attracted the witnesses to the spot and on their intervention the accused persons ran away.