MADDI SUBBA RAO Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The revision and the appeal arise out of the orders of the II Additional Sessions Judge, Guntur in Criminal A No. 270 of 1968.

(2.) The accused are residents of Santhanuthalapad. A charge-sheet was filed against them in the Court of the Additional Distiict Munsif Magistrate, Ongole by the Circle Inspector of Police for offences under sections 147, 332, 427 read, with 149, Indian Penal Code,alleging that the accused, 13 in number, had formed themselves into an unlawful assembly on 20th August, 1967, at about 11-30 P.M. and assaulted P.W. 1 the Commercial Tax Officer as well as his peon P.W. 7 when they had come along with others of the Department and had asked for inspection of the account books in the mill premises and had also caused damage to the jeep which was stationed outside. In support of their case, the prosecution had. examined 16 witnesses.

(3.) The facts spoken to by them are briefly as follows : On 20th August, 1967 at about 10-30 P.M. P.W. 1 the Commercial Tax Officer, Ongole, accompanied by P.W. 2 the Deputy Commercial Tax Officer, P.W. 3 the Assistant Commercial Tax Officer, P.W. 4 the Special Assistant Commercial Tax O cer, P.W. 5 the Commercial Tax Inspector, P.W. 6 their clerk, P.Ws. 7 and 8 peons, left the Commercial Tax Office at Ongole in the Departmental jeep APG. 4782 driven by P.W. 9 to check lorries carrying goods on Ongole-Kurnool road. After checking a lorry at Pernimitta, they had come to Santhanuthalapad at 10-30 P.M. and on seeing an empty lorry A.P.K. 1831 coming, they stopped, it and learnt from him that he had unloaded 87 bags of ground-nut kernel in Jayalakshmi Bharat Oil Mill at Santhanuthalapad having brought it from Kandulur. P.W.1 then took the original copy of the trip sheet in the lorry and all of them proceeded in the jeep to the mill to verify the stocks. The mill was then working with lights on and the gate was closed. They shouted from outside the gate to open it, but no one opened it. Thereupon P.W. 1 asked P.W. 3 to go inside and verify the bags of ground-nut kernel and P.Ws. 1, 2 and 7 vent to an adjacent mill to find out whether it is working. Findig that it is not Working, they returned and all of them entered through the wicket gate of the mill. Accused 1, 5 and 7 were in the verandah of the mill and P.W.1 asked A-5 to show the register to verify whether the stocks received were entered in the register. A-5 did not produce the register and when P.W. 1 questioned him again, A-5 raised a hue and cry saying that they had no right to enter the mill at that part of the night without obtaining the permission of the village Munsif Meanwhile, A-1 was questioning them regarding their entry into the mill and as P.W. 7, the peon asked him not to be boisterous and show some respect to the officers, A-1 slapped him on the cheek and abused him and P.W. 7 raised a cry saying that he was slapped and a heated talk followed. P.W. 1 saying that he would give a police report for the slapping of the peon and would come next day with the police aid and check the registers and stock and as the situation was going explosive they began to leave the place. Then they found a number of persons entering the mill led by A-2 and A-3, four or five of them including A-2 and A-3 being armed with sticks. A-2 then abused P.W. 1 and instigated others to beat P.W.1 and his staff. A-3 beat P.W. 1 giving a number of blows with the stick; A-2 and A-4 caught hold of his hands and dragged him, fisted him, and tore his shirt and pant. P.W. 1 out of fear passed urine and stools also in his clothes. A-6 pushed, down P.W. 2 and A-5 tried to beat him, but he escaped. P.W.3 -was beaten by A-7 with a stick when he tried to intervene. P.W. 4 was beaten by A-8 and pushed and fisted by A-9. A-10 twisted the hands of P.W. 5 and quashed him down. Some of those in the mill premises went out and of them A-12 pulled P.W. 9 out of the jeep and pushed him while A-13 beat him. A-7, A-8, A-11 and A-12 then broke the wind-screen, and d.amaged it. P.W. 10 a resident of Santhanuthalapad having his house a furlong away from the mill, on hearing the 'Galata' and seeing people running towards the mill at about mid-night, went towards the said, mill along with his grandson-one Sadanandarao and on going into the mill, he found that the officers including P.W. 1 were being beaten. Hs intervened and stopped the disturbance and took P.W. 1, whose shirt was torn and slightly stained with blood, and the other staff to his house. Leaving them at his house, he went to the house of the Village Munsif and not finding him there, as lie was returning, he met him in the bazaar ana when he told him of what had happended he was evasive and did not come. Then P.W. 1 drafted the report Exhibit P-1 at the house of P.W. 10 and sent it to the Police Station. P.W. 16 the Inspector of Police received, the report and sent it to the Chimakurti Police station for registration and then went to Santhanuthalapad at about 9 A.M., the following day i.e., 21st August, 1967 and there in the house of P.W. 10 found P.W. 1 and others and also the jeep in front with the wind-screen glass completely broken. Then he seized the broken glass pieces as well as the clothes worn by PW. 1. The injured were sent to the Government Hospital at Ongole and P.W. 15 the doctor who examined them, found 14 injuries on P.W. 1, two on P.W. 2 and one each on P.Ws. 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9 and had issued the wound certificates Exhibits P-5 to 12. The Circle Inspector found the accused absconding. After the completion of investigation, he filed the charge-sheet on 6th November,1967.