ANISH SK Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) APPELLANTS jointly have impugned the judgment and order of conviction dated 11th March, 1989 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Birbhum at Suri whereby all of them have been sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for life under Section 302/34 of Indian Penal Code. The appellants before us along with ten other persons viz., Hasibul Hassan, Sayed Badruddin alias Mukul, Sayed Abdul Hassan alias Balai Mia, Patal Sk. Bimal Chandra Ghosh, Allauddin, Tamal Ch. Ghosh, Anish Chowdhury, Narayan Ghosh and Meherjan Sk. were arraigned for trial of the charges under Sections 302/34, 120 -B/302 of Indian Penal Code. The aforesaid trial was initiated by the prosecution in pursuance of a written complaint which was treated as part of the F.I.R., made by one Durgapada Hati being PW -1. The sum and substance of the allegations made in the above complaint is as follows :

(2.) HE on or about 5th August, 1985 was a conductor of a bus bearing registration No. WGD 1551 known as 'Ma Kamala'. The said bus in which he was then on duty as a conductor was as usual placed for services on the route Bolpur to Gunutia. The said bus started on that day at 4.15 p.m. afternoon from Bolpur and it was supposed to reach at Gunutia at 6.40 p.m. in the evening. On its way to Gunutia from Bolpur the bus stopped at Loharda, a hamlet, situates in the District of Birbhum at about 5.30 p.m. The Loharda bus stop situates at the crossing of another metal road connecting Kirnahar and Labpur. At Loharda bus stop some passengers got down from the bus and a group of eight or nine persons got into bus. One of the aforesaid eight or nine persons went to the driver's place and stood there with a 'Dan' (sharp metal weapon). The said person threatened the driver not to start the bus. Being terrorized the driver did not start the bus. At that time remaining persons of the aforesaid group started chopping up three men and a woman who were then travelling in the bus. The blows and assaults were inflicted on their heads, throats and different parts of their persons with the sharp weapons, viz., 'katari', 'bagi'. It is further alleged in the written complaint that at that point of time there were as many as 40 persons (passengers) on board the said bus. Having witnessed this dreaded incident all the passengers who were on board the bus got down and fled away having been stricken with panic. After having accomplished the misdeeds, the assailants too got down from the bus and took to their heels and disappeared through the field adjacent to Loharda village. They of course carried away all the weapons that they brought. Those persons seemed to be Muslim and they were wearing 'lungi' and trousers. They were aged about 30/40 years. They took about 5 to 10 minutes to finish those aforesaid persons one of which was woman. The aforesaid assailants did not do any harm to any other passenger. It seemed that the aforesaid persons committed the said murder in order to take revenge of their past incident. All the aforesaid victims boarded on the bus from Bolpur and they were bound for Abadnagar. The victims had paid him Rs. 10/ - for their bus fare. Apart from the said complainant the driver, cleaner and one Biswanath Mondal witnessed the aforesaid incident.

(3.) IN pursuance of the aforesaid complaint the Investigating Officer of the Bolpur Police Station started investigation and came to the said spot where the incident occurred. The Investigating Officer seized the dead bodies of the four victims, prepared inquest report and seizure list. Thereafter the said dead bodies were sent for autopsy examination. After obtaining post - mortem report and the statements under Section 161 from the various witnesses the aforesaid persons were brought for trial and they were charged by the learned Trial Judge to the following effect :