STATE OF M P Vs. CHIMAN SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) At the relevant time in the year 1917, P.W. 2 Munpadevi (twenty-eight years) was working as a teacher in a girls primary school in village Parsatola of Rajnandgaon district. P.W. 1 Bansilal (thirty years) was her husband and lived with her in the said village. P.W. 11 Surjibai was mother-in-law of Munnabai and she too lived with her in the said village.

(2.) The case of the prosecution against the eight accused persons Chiman Singh. Gendobai, Mehtarinbai, Narbad Singh, Damesai. Narayan Singh, Dhaniram and Arjun Prasad was that on the date of the incident i.e. 15-1-1971 at about 2.30 in the afternoon the said persons acting in prosecution of their common object trespassed into the house of P.W. 2 Munnadevi with a view to cause hurt to her and to her bus band P.W. 1 Bansilal and in fact gave a beating to them with fist blows and Chappals resulting in grievous hurt to P.W. 2 Munnadevi and simple hurt to P.W. Bansilal. However, on an appreciation of evidence produced in the case it was found by the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Rajnandgaon vide his judgment dated 16-7-1979 passed in Criminal Case No. 127 of 1977 that the prosecution failed to establish its abovesaid case against the accused persons. He, accordingly, acquitted the accused persons of the offences under Sections 452, 323/149 and 325/149 Indian Penal Code alleged against them in the said connection. The present appeal has been filed by the State against the acquittal of the accused persons of the above said offences.

(3.) There was evidence produced in the case suggesting that a few days prior to the date of the incident P.W. 1 Bansilal, husband of P.W. 2 Munnabai, had tried to take liberty with one of the girls in the village. There was also evidence produced in the case suggesting that the said girl i.e. Gayatribai bad lodged a complaint about the incident with the school authorities and on coming to know about the said fact P. W. 2 Munnadevi had beaten Gayatribai with a Chappal at the village well. Now, out of the eight accused persons, five of them i.e. accused nos. 1 to 5 namely Chimanisingh. Gendobai, Mebtarinbai, Narbad Singh and Damesai were close relations of Gayatribai Accused no. 8 namely Arjun Prasad was the head master of the middle school in the village. The defence of the accused persons was that it was with a view to counter-blast the charges that had been under investigation against P.W.2 Munnadevi and her husband P.W. 1 Bansilal that the said two persons concocted a story and implicated them falsely in the matter.