RAM SWARUP Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These are three connected appeals out of the judgment and order dated 2-8-1980 passed by Sri O.N. Asthana, the then IV Additional Sessions Judge, Mainpuri in Sessions Trial No. 167 of 1979. Criminal Appeal No. 1711 of 1980 is being treated as the leading appeal and all the three appeals are being disposed of by this common judgment. Ram Swarup is the appellant of leading Appeal No. 1711 of 1980 whereas Ram Sewak and Sukhvasi Lal are the appellants of connected appeals No. 1710 of 1980 and 2126 of 1980 respectively. Ram Sewak has been convicted under Section 379, I.P.C. and sentenced to one year's rigorous imprisonment. Sukhvasi Lal has been convicted under Section 302, I.P.C. and sentenced to life imprisonment whereas Ram Swarup has been convicted under Section 302, I.P.C. read with Section 34, IPC and has been sentenced to life imprisonment.

(2.) The prosecution case as per the First Information Report and the evidence on record was that on 27-3-1978 at about 4 P.M. PW 1 Vishun Dayal arrived at his tube-well to start it to irrigate his standing wheat crop in village Byonti Kalan, Police Station Bewar, district Mainpuri. The tube well engine needed two persons to give the start, one to move the handle and the other to press the valve. PW 1 Vishun Dayal opened the tube-well Kothari and cleaned the engine for a couple of minutes. Thereafter, he went to the riverside in the northwest and called his nephew Radhey Shyam who was irrigating his field by taking river water with the help of a diesel engine. When PW 1 Vishun Dayal took Radhey Shyam to help in the start of tube-well engine, Radhey Shyam left his field in the charge of his brother and came to the tube-well of his uncle PW 1 Vishun Dayal. Radhey Sham found that the accused-appellant Ram Sewak was digging potatoes from the field of his uncle PW 1 Vishun Dayal. He caught hold of Ram Sewak while he was doing so. PW 1 Vishun Dayal who was following him also came. Radhey Shyam told him that Ram Sewak was digging potatoes from the field stealthily. Potatoes were lying open. Radhey Shyam catching hold of Ram Sewak started taking him to Abadi of the village so as to chastise him publicly before the villagers. Ram Sewak cried for help. Radhey Shyam could carry Ram Sewak hardly to a little distance when Ram Sewak's brother Sukhvasi Lal armed with spear and Ram Swarup armed with pistol arrived from their house situated in the Abadi of Katra a little away from the tube-well of PW 1 Vishun Dayal. They asked Radhey Shyam to release Ram Sewak. Hearing shouts, PW 1 Vishun Dayal also came out from his tube-well where he had gone when his nephew Radhey Shyam had told him that he was taking Ram Sewak to the Abadi. As Radhey Shyam insisted to take Ram Sewak to the Abadi, Sukhvasi Lal assaulted Radhey Shyam with his spear. Ram Swarup also opened fire from his pistol on him. Radhey Shyam fell down on the ground in the north of the field of Berhi Beti, PW 2 Dwarika Prasad, PW 3 Patiram and others who were nearby saw this occurrence, Sukhvasi Lal and Ram Swarup thus got released Ram Sewak from the holding of Radhey Shyam and ran towards western side. Radhey Shyam was laid on a cot and taken to Bewar on a tractor trolley of one Lajja Ram by PW 1 Vishun Dayal and others. He died in the way at about 6.30 P.M. When tractor carrying the dead body of Radhey Shyam reached Bewar town, PW 1 Vishun Dayal prepared First Information Report Ex. Ka 1 and took the same along with the dead body of Radhey Shyam on the tractor to the Police Station. There, First Information Report was lodged at 7.45 P.M. A case under Section 302, I.P.C. was registered. Panchayatnama etc. of the dead body of the deceased had been prepared at the Police Station itself by the Investigating Officer PW 5 S.I. V.K. Gupta. The spot was visited by him the next day. The dead body of the deceased was sent for post-mortem which was conducted by PW 4 Dr. S. B. Agarwal. The following ante-mortem injuries were found on his person who was a young man aged about 26 years : 1. Lacerated wound 2.5 cm. x 0.5 cm. x scalp deep on the right side head 8 cm. above the right ear. 2. Oblique punctured wound 2 cm. x 1 cm. x cavity deep on the left axillary (out) line 7 cm. outer from left nipple at 2'O clock position. Margins clean cut and ends tappering and tailing medially.

(3.) The death had occurred due to shock and haemorrhage as a result of chest injury which was sufficient in normal course to cause death. Ultimately, after conclusion of the investigation the accused-appellants were booked for trial. They pleaded false implication Their case was that Ram Sewak happened to see PW 1 Vishun Dayal making indecent gestures and overtures towards the wife of Vakil Kumhar and he spoke about this misconduct of PW 1 Vishun Dayal to the villagers on Holi dwij (a date before this incident). Thus, PW 1 Vishun Dayal was much annoyed of Ram Sewak and his family members and thus he happened to falsely implicate the accused-appellants all of whom are brothers.