IRFAN Vs. STATE OF M P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All the appeals arise out of the common judgment passed by the Court below, as such they are being disposed of by this common judgment.

(2.) Appellants have filed these appeals against the judgment dated 18.01.2002 passed by Tenth Additional Sessions Judge, Jabalpur in Sessions Trial No.463/ 1999 convicting all the appellants except appellant Mohammad Ali under section 364-A of the Indian Penal Code and sentencing each of them to imprisonment for life with fine of Rs.500/-. Appellant Mohammad Ali has been convicted under section 368 read with section 364-A of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to imprisonment for life with fine of Rs.500/-.

(3.) In nutshell, the prosecution case is that Shashank Gupta, a child of about 7 years of age, was a student of Class I of Bela Singh School, Premnagar Madanmahal, Jabalpur. On 23.3.1999 at about 7 o'clock, in the morning, he had gone to appear in the examination. His father Santosh Gupta (PW2) had left him at the school. Since Santosh Gupta was busy in repairing the roof of his house he sent his brother-in-law Bhupendra Gupta (PW7) to fetch Shashank. After the time of the school was over, at about 10:30 a.m., when Bhupendra Gupta reached the school, he did not find Shashank there. He inquired from teacher and peon, but Shashank was not traceable. He rushed to his house and informed Santosh Gupta and Manju Gupta and again went to school with them, but they did not find Shashank at the school. Grandfather of Shashank namely Kamta Prasad (PW5) lodged a report Ex.P/5 with the police about the missing of Shashank. On the same day in the evening at about 5 p.m. Kamta Prasad received a phone call from some unknown person inquiring whether Shashank had come back. On 24.3.1999 and 25.3.1999, again Kamta Prasad received phone calls from some unknown person, who told if they wanted their child back they should give Rs.5 lacs. When Kamta Prasad replied that they were not in a position to arrange for such a huge amount, he replied if they wanted their child back they will have to manage. On 25.3.1999, police registered the case under section 364-A of the Indian Penal Code as per F.I.R. Ex.P/11 against the unknown persons and started investigation. Omprakash Patel (PW14), Station Officer of Police Station Barghat, District Seoni, on receiving the radio message from police control room, Jabalpur checked all the STD/PCOs. On getting information from an informer that a boy was seen in suspicious circumstances near the house of accused Mohammad Ali, he reached there. As soon as he reached, 2-3 persons tried to run away from there who were nabbed by the police. They were accused Irfan, Mukesh and Javed. On the information furnished by the aforesaid accused persons, kidnapped child Shashank was recovered from the house of Mohammad Ali. Shashank disclosed to police that accused Mukesh had asked him to go on Heropuch moped with other two accused persons who instead of carrying him to his house, took away to some other place. Accused persons had told to him that his mother and father were admitted in the hospital, therefore, they had come to pick him up. They used to tell him that his parents would come and take him to his house. When he was playing with some boys, Mukesh and other accused persons asked him to go inside the house but thereafter police reached there. In the course of investigation, police recorded the statements of Bal Govind Sahu (PW3) and Hemant (PW4), who were running the STD booth at Barghat from where the accused persons had made phone calls to the house of Shashank. Accused persons were also identified by these witnesses before the test identification parade conducted by the Executive Magistrate K.L.Soni (PW11). After investigation, charge sheet was filed and case was committed for trial.