SUGREEV Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is directed against the judgment dated 8th September, 1987, passed by II Additional Sessions Judge, Mathura whereby all the appellants were held guilty under Section 302/34 I.P.C. and were sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life.

(2.) We have heard learned counsel for the appellants and Mrs. Meena, learned A.G.A. representing the State and have perused the record.

(3.) The factual matrix of the case as unfurled during the trial is that on 26.07.1986 at about 10.20 A.M. when the informant Shivcharan along with his cousin brother Chandan Singh was going to his work place and reached near Roti Godown, Krishna Puri, they saw the appellants Sugreev, Pappu and Ram Singh, having previous enmity, standing on the road. The appellants Sugreev and Pappu were armed with country made pistols and appellant Ram Singh was standing there with a motorcycle having its engine on. Seeing them the informant and his brother turned around and tried to run away. Meanwhile, the appellant Sugreev fired on them with an intention to kill them. The fire hit at the back of Chandan Singh. Just after that, the appellant Pappu made another fire which hit at the right temporal region of Chandan Singh as a result of which he fell down and died on the spot. After committing the murder of Chandan Singh, both the appellants Sugreev and Pappu ran away on the motorcycle of appellant Ram Singh, which he had already kept started. The occurrence was witnessed by the brother-in-law of the informant (another Pappu) and witnesses Bhagwan Das and Gyan Singh. The motive behind the occurrence was also mentioned by the informant in the F.I.R. to the effect that there was personal enmity between them in connection with a criminal case in which the informant and Chandan Singh were witnesses. It has been alleged by the prosecution that after the appellants Sugreev and Pappu were released on bail in the aforesaid case, they put pressure on informant Shivcharan not to appear as witness in that case, but Shivcharan not only refused to oblige them rather he stated that he would definitely state in the Court whatever he had seen and he would speak only the truth in the Court. The F.I.R. of the case was lodged promptly at 11.45 A.M. on the same day. The occurrence has taken place at 10.20 A.M. and the distance of police station is one and a half kilometers from the place of occurrence i.e. Roti Godown. The investigation of the case was taken up by S.I. Ram Pratap Singh, who immediately rushed to the scene of occurrence along with S.I. Mahendra Singh Yadav and other police force. S.I. Mahendra Singh Yadav conducted the inquest and prepared the inquest report. He also prepared other connected papers and sent the dead body of deceased Chandan Singh for post mortem. The post mortem on the dead body of the deceased was conducted by Dr. P.C. Sharma of Civil Hospital, Mathura. The I.O. recorded the statement of witnesses, collected blood stained and plain earth from the place of occurrence, prepared the site plan and after completion of investigation submitted the charge sheet against all the three appellants.