MUKBUL ALI NADAF Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appeal is instituted by original accused Nos.1 to 5 and 8, assailing the judgment passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Gadhinglaj dtd. 12/12/1996, pronouncing the appellants guilty of the offence punishable under Sec. 397 of the Indian Penal Code (for short, "the IPC") and sentencing them to suffer R.I. for a period of seven years and to pay fne of Rs.10,000.00 each, in default to suffer further R.I. for two years. By the very same judgment, accused Nos.6, 7, 9 to 11 came to be acquitted by extending the beneft of doubt.

(2.) During the pendency of appeal, appellant No.2 has expired and, therefore, he stood deleted from the array of appellant and the appeal is being prosecuted by the remaining appellants.

(3.) The prosecution case in brief is that on 24/04/1991, the complainant (PW 5) Gurappa Humbarwadi received cash amount of Rs.12,00,000.00 from his son Suhas (PW 12), who had withdrawn the amount from Canara Bank, Khade Bazar Branch, Belgaum by encashing three different cheques. Out of the cash received, he paid Rs.10,000.00 to one Ismail and by placing remaining amount of Rs.11,90,000.00 in a bag, which was plied in his Maruti Car, accompanied by Mr.Patil, he arrived at village Turkewadi, where he handed over an amount of Rs.6,00,000.00 to Manager Shri Deshmukh of cashewnut factory. He then proceeded to Adkur, where the person accompanying him got down. When the complainant arrived near village Naganwadi where he was enroute to Chandgad to make payment of Rs.4,00,000.00 to one Kanekar and when he reached near the nala near Valkuli, he noticed a tempo standing on the bridge of the nala. Since, there was no passage for him to move ahead, he was required to halt. The prosecution case is that the accused persons disembarked from the tempo, threw chilly powder at him and took away the keys of his car. He was assaulted by a tommy in hand of one of the accused, resulting into a fracture injury to his right hand and bleeding injury on his head. In this incident, he was robbed of the cash of Rs.5,90,000.00 and some papers of Sales Tax, which were placed in the car. The complainant sought help from the bypassers, but was turned down. He some how managed to stop a tempo on the Chandgad Road and came to Chandgad Police Station and narrated the incident to the police offcer. He was advised to to approach the doctor. Accordingly, he reported to the Medical Offcer, Chandgad, who stitched his wound and applied bandage to his hand. The complaint was lodged at Chandgad Police Station, which was signed after reading the complaint.