UDE SINGH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) UDE Singh and Thakur Singh both aged about 25-26 vears were convicted on a charge of having murdered Swaran Singh aged about 22 vears and sentenced to imprisonment for life.

(2.) THE two accused persons, the deceased and some others were all labourers working in the D B K Railway Project, hailing from East Punjab and camping at village Cherupali, district Bolangir for construction of a bridge on river Ang. On the night of February 5, 1963 at about 8 p. m. the two accused persons were quarrelling between themselves. It is said that their leader Jamadar Lambar Singh p. W. "went to the two accused persons and asked them not to quarrel and stop making hulla. The accused persons however did not listen. It was then that the deceased Swaran Singh who is said to be nephew of Jamadar Lambar Singh went to the accused persons and asked them to stop making hulla The prosecution case is that it was at this stage when Swaran Singh had come to intervene in the quarrel between the two accused persons the accused Ude Singh caught hold of the left hand of the deceased Swaran Singh and shouted at the other accused Thakur Singh to avail of the opportunity and attack the deceased without wasting time; immediately the accused Thakur Singh who was at the right side of the deceased Swaran Singh brought out a knife from his pyjama pocket and stabbed swaran Singh by piercing the left side of his chest. It was on these facts that the two accused persons were charged for murder of the deceased Swaran Singh by stabbing him with a knife as aforesaid in furtherance of the common intention of them both to kill him and they were charged for having committed an offence punishable under Section 302/34 I. P. C. Both the accused persons denied the charge altogether. In due course the two accused persons were committed to trial before the Sessions Judge who convicted and sentenced them both as aforesaid

(3.) THE prosecution case is mainly based on the direct testimony of two eve-witnesses P. W. 3 Baggaram and P. W. 16 Bhola Singh both labourers in the said d. B. K. Railway camping at Cherupali. The version of these two eve-witnesses as to the manner in which the two accused persons had murdered the deceased swaran Singh as given in their deposition is in substance the same. The material portion of the evidence of P. W. 3 Baggaram is this :