SHIV NANDAN Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal was preferred by as many as six appellants who were convicted under Section 396, IPC and sentenced to imprisonment for life. No charge alternatively under any other section was framed nor they were prosecuted for the said charge. Out of these appellants Shiv Nandan, Babu Lal, Raja Ram and Anandi are now dead. The appeal of Babu Lal, Raja Ram and Anandi stands abated vide order dated 15-12-2003. The appeal of Shiv Nandan also stands abated vide order dated 30-1-2004.

(2.) We are left, therefore, with the case of only Gauri Shanker and Prabhat. Gauri Shanker is son of Shiv Nandan and Prabhat is son of Babu Lal. Shiv Nandan and Babu Lal were inter se related. All the accused persons, the informant and the deceased were residents of village Palwa, Police Station Khakhreru, District Fatehpur.

(3.) As per the First Information Report a deep-seated enmity was pre-existing for the last 5-6 years. Rudra Prasad Vaish, the brother of Babu Lal was murdered. In that murder the informant his brother and some other persons were prosecuted. The trial according to the prosecution resulted into acquittal. The acquittal did not subside animus. The incident of Rudra Prasad's murder took place 3-4 years before this incident. Three four months before the present incident a dacoity was committed in the house of Shiv Nandan and Gauri Shanker. In that case during the investigation, the informant, his son Santosh Kumar and Mithai Lal s/o Basudeo Singh were nominated. These accused persons, members of the present complainant party in the said case, were on bail. In between a proceeding under Section 107/ 117, Cr. P.C. was also contested between the rival factions. Thus there is no dearth of evidence of intense inter se animus between these two families.