PRASAD BARIHA Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant Prasad Bariha faced trial in the Court of learned Sessions Judge, Bolangir in Sessions Case No. 86-B of 2002 for commission of offences punishable under sections 323/506/302 of the Indian Penal Code for committing murder of Parsuram Bariha (hereinafter 'the deceased').

(2.) The prosecution case, as per the first informant report lodged on 27.01.2002 by one Smt. Samari Bariha (P.W.1) before the officer in charge of Patnagarh police station is that on that day at about 8.00 a.m., the deceased who was her younger son was guarding the cotton crop grown in the field and P.W.8 Giridhari Bariha was also with him. At that point of time, the appellant Prasad Bariha came there and had some conversation with the deceased and all on a sudden, the appellant assaulted the deceased by means of a bamboo stick on his head and after the deceased fell down on the ground, the appellant also assaulted on the chest of the deceased by means of a stone. P.W.8 ran away from the spot and came to the house of the deceased and intimated about the occurrence. It is the further prosecution case as per the first information report that Budu Sahu (P.W.2) and Seshadev Sahu (P.W.3) who were there at the spot, intervened while the occurrence was going on but they were also threatened by the appellant with dire consequences. 3 When P.W.1 reached at the spot, she found the deceased was lying on the ground with bleeding injuries. Immediately the deceased was shifted to Patnagarh hospital where he was hospitalized.

(3.) After submission of charge sheet, the case was committed to the Court of Session for trial after observing due committal procedure where the learned trial Court charged the appellant under sections 323/506/302 of the Indian Penal Code on 20.02.2003 and since the appellant refuted the charge, pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried, the sessions trial procedure was resorted to prosecute him and establish his guilt.