SHEO POOJAN Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This criminal appeal is directed against the judgment and order of conviction dated 20-8-1980 and sentence dated 27-8-1980 passed by Sri S.C.M. Tripathi, the then VI Addl. Sessions Judge, Azamgarh convicting the accused appellants Sheo Poojan, Sheo Kumar, Om Prakash, Ramdeo and Bansh Raj under Sections 147/148/302 read with Section 149, I.P.C. and sentencing them to undergo R.I. for a period of one year under Section 147, I.P.C., three years R.I. under Section 149, I.P.C. and life imprisonment under Section 302 read with Section 149, I.P.C. each. All the sentence to rule concurrently.

(2.) The prosecution story briefly stated was as follows :A brutal murder of one Vijay Bahadur Singh (deceased) was committed by the accused appellants who had formed an unlawful assembly with the common object of committing the said murder and who armed themselves with deadly weapons like fire arms viz. country made pistol, bomb, knife and Gandasa in the broad day light at 10.00 a.m. on 20-8- 1979 in the main market known as Gopalganj Bazar lying in village Gendaura within the circle of police station Ahiraula district Azamgarh.

(3.) The complainant Santraj Singh, (PW 1) is the real brother of deceased Vijai Bahadur Singh. They were Thakur by caste and were resident of village Tahar Kishundeopur P.S. Ahiraula district Azamgarh. The accused-appellants were Yadav by caste. They were resident of that very village. Accused appellants Sheo Poojan and Sheo Kumar are the real brothers. Accused appellant Om Prakash is the son of accused-appellant Sheo Poojan. Accused appellants Ramdeo and Bansraj were their close associates. Gopalganj market is a small township which lies at a distance of about five furlongs from village Tahar Kishundeopur. There was a pucca road running through this township connecting the village and police station Ahiraula which lay at a distance of 6 miles towards the east of the scene of occurrence. From towards north of the road within the township, towards east there was a passage which ran further towards north upto a canal, which passage further led to a canal culvert. There was a shop of one Bansi Sonar towards north of the road, and East of this passage, Adjoining to the passage there was a medicine shop of one Shabbir Khan which was popularly known as medical hall. Towards the west of this medical hall and north of the road various shops and houses were situated. This location of the road, passage and the shops within the township is as shown in the site plan Ext. Ka-8 and the statement of Santraj (PW 1), the brother of the deceased of the deceased was not disputed before the trial Court nor before this Court of Appeal.