PRAMOD KALIA @ RAMESH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Appellants Ram Lakhan, Baleshwar alias behra, Prem Singh and Pramod alias Ramesh alias Kalia were convicted under Sections 396, 307 and 412 Indian Penal Code, and sentenced to death for the offence under Sec. 396 Indian Penal Code for five years R.I. under Sec. 307 Indian Penal Code and to seven years R.I. under Sec. 412 Indian Penal Code in Sessions Trial No. 66 of 1994 decided on 8.2.1995 by Additional Sessions Judge, Dehradun. By the same judgement and order in Sessions Trial No. 12 of 1994 Pramod alias Kalia alias Ramesh was also convicted under Sec. 25/4 of the Arms Act and sentenced to undergo six months R.I. All the sentences were, however, made to run concurrently. One Jageshwar alias Surjeet alias Sarvendra was also tried along with the appellants. In the F.I.R. his name was stated to be Surjeet. The trial court acquitted him on the ground of the failure of the prosecution to prove that Surjeet is the alias of Jageshwar. The above crimes are said to have been committed in the night of 17/18.2.1994 at the house of Kanhaiya in village Sudhowala, Police Station Sahaspur, Dehradun. Towards the south-east side of the house of deceased Kanhaiya is Uttarkhand Woolen Yarn Factory. In fact the house of Kanhaiya is situate within the compound of the aforesaid woolen factory (hereinafter referred to as Factory). Towards the north-east of the factory are the huts of Prem Singh and Baleshwar accused. Towards the north-west side of the house of Kanhaiya is the house of Amar Singh. Factory is surrounded on three sides by the fields in which the crop was growing at that time. Towards the southern side of factory is Chakrata Dehradun Road. Ram Lakham also resided at a small distance from the house of Kanhaiya. Accused Pramod alias Ramesh alias Kalia and Jageshwar alias Surjeet used to visit the house of Ram Lakhan, Baleshwar alias Behra and Prem Singh. Ram Lakhan is related to Kanhaiya and as such P.W. 1 Km. Geeta alias Seeta (hereinafter referred to as Km. Geeta) daughter of Kanhaiya. All the five accused used to come to the house of Kanhaiya and as such P.W.1 Km. Geeta alias Seeta (hereinafter referred to as Km. Geeta) daughter of Kanhaiya, knew them. Along with Kanhaiya his wife Urmila, P.W. 1 Km. Geeta and her Mausi Sukhdo Devi were residing. In the night of occurrence at about 9 P.M. all the accused came to the house of Kanhaiya. Inmates of the house were talking to each other and the lamp was kept lighted there. They had also a dog which was sitting there. All the five accused came there. Ram Lakhan asked that the dog be tied up upon which Kanhaiya tied it. After a while Ram Lakhan asked Kanhaiya to come with him to the jungle in order to bring the wood. Kanhaiya followed Ram Lakhan. Accused Prem Singh was left at the house of Km. Geeta. The other accused also accompanied Kanhaiya. After some time all the four accused came but Kanhaiya did not accompany them. Smt. Urmila Devi asked these accused as to where her husband was whereupon they told her that he is coming in a while. Kanhaiya, however, did not return whereupon Ram Lakhan accused asked Smt. Sukhdo Devi to accompany them to search Kanhaiya. Baleshwar accused was left at the house. The remaining four accused accompanied Smt. Urmila Devi to the jungle in order to search Kanhaiya. After some time the four accused came back but neither Kanhaiya nor Smt. Urmila Devi accompanied them. P.W. 1 Km. Geeta alias Sita inquired from the accused as to where her parents were, upon which accused Ram Lakhan hurling abuses upon P.W. 1 Km. Geeta alias Sita said that she was talking too much and she be dis-honoured. her mausi Smt. Urmila protested and said that if any body touched her she would report the matter to the police. The accused then started dragging P.W. 1 Km. Geeta. Smt. Urmila rebuked the accused on which all the accused started beating her and dragged her out of the house. Smt. Urmila was crying. After some time, the cries of her Mausi stopped. All the accused came inside the house. Ram Lakhan inflicted a Katari blow upon the neck of P.W.1 Km. Geeta which/she warded of with her hand. Ramesh and other accused who were armed with Chhoori and knife inflicted injuries upon her mouth and neck. She fell down on the ground. The accused thought that she was dead and then the accused took away all the belonging of Kanhaiya's house. P.W. 1 Km. Geeta became un-conscious and remained so till the next date when at about 4 P.M. P.W.4 Km. Nisha daughter of Jaman Singh whose house is situate at a small distance towards the southern side of the factory came to meet P.W.1 Km. Geeta. She called her from outside the house but as there was no response she went inside the house and saw P.W. 1 Km. Geeta lying there injured. She stated in her statement that P.W.1 Km. Geeta told her that some ruffians had inflicted injuries upon her and that her Mausi had also been killed, where upon she went to P.W. 7 Dhan Singh Chowkidar of the factory who along with P.W.5 Pritam Singh came to the ouse of Kanhaiya. They found P.W.1 Km. Geeta lying injured. She told them in low voice that Ram Lakhan, Prem Singh, Ramesh and Baleshwar had abducted her parents and had killed her Mausi and injured her. In the meantime the villagers had also collected. They took P.W. 1 Km. Geeta to the Hospital. P.W. 7 Dhan Singh came to P.W. 6 Chandra Pal Singh Pradhan of the village, got the F.I.R. Ext. Ka-4 of the incident scribed by him, put his signature upon it and reached Police Station Sahaspur where he handed over this report to P.W. 8 H.C. Suresh Chandra. On the basis on this F.I.R. he prepared check report Ext. Ka-29 made its entry in the General Diary and registered a case. The first Information Report was also signed by P.W.6 Chandra Pal Singh. In this F.I.R. the names of four accused namely Ram Lakhan, Ramesh, Baleshwar and Prem Singh have been given. P.W. 5 Pritam Singh in his statement gave out that P.W. 1 Km. Geeta had told the names of five accused namely Ram Lakhan, Ramesh, Baleshwar, Surjeet and Prakash. The investigation of the case was taken up by P.W. 15 S.S.I. Harendra Singh who was posted as Station Officer Police Station Sahaspur. He along with S.I. Lala Ram Pal reached the place of incident. The dead body of Kanhaiya was found at a distance of about 160 steps from the house. The dead body of Smt. Urmila was found at a distance of about 150 paces from the house of deceased Kanhaiya. Both the dead bodies were lying in the fields. The dead body of Smt. Sukhdo Devi was found at a distance of 12 paces from the house of the deceased. Under the instructions of the Investigating Officer S.I. Lala Ram Pal prepared the inquest reports of the three dead bodies (Exts. Ka-1, Ka-2, Ka-3). P.W.3 Kunwar Singh is a witness of these Panchayatnamas. S.I. Lala Ram Pal also prepared other required papers and sent the dead bodies through P.W.2 Constable Narottam Dass, Constables Anil Kumar and Ram Das for post-mortem examination. P.W. 14 Dr. P.K. Nautiyal conducted the Postmortem examination of these three dead bodies on 19.2.1994. He found the following ante-mortem injury upon the dead bodies of Smt. Sukhdo Devi:-