ANANDA CHANDRA KAR Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants, 16 in number, have been convicted under Sections 148 and 304 read with Section 34 IPC and each has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year on the first count and ten years on the second count. They have also been convicted under Section 304 read with Section 149 IPC but no sentence has been awarded inasmuch as sentence under Section 304 read with Section 34 IPC has already been imposed.

(2.) IN short, the prosecution case is that on 21 -1 -1982 at about 11 or 12 a.m. while Ankura Mallik (PW 1) was in the tank of his village Chandipur for taking bath, his son Ramesh (PW 3) came and informed him that his elder brother Suresh (deceased) who was aged about 18 years as per the post mortem report (Ext. 4), was being assaulted near the sugarcane bari of Ananda Kar. Being so informed, he went there along with his son Ramesh and found that the appellants and some others were assaulting the deceased Suresh by means of Bhali. Tangias, Farsa and Lathis and his said son was crying. When he raised protest they also assaulted him with the weapons of offence they were holding. In the meanwhile, when his wife Kanchan (PW 2) who came from her nearby house hearing hue and cry raised protest, she was also not spread. In course of assaults, Ramesh (PW 3) concealed himself behind a stone lying at a little distance away, but when his father (PW 1) told him on raised voice to inform the incident to the villagers, he went inside the village and intimated the incident to some villagers. On receipt of such information, the villagers came to the spot but before their arrival at their sight all the appellants; took to their heels. It is further alleged that as a result of the assaults the deceased breathed his last at the spot and Ankura and his wife became injured. Sometime thereafter, Bairagi Malik, the maternal uncle of PW 3 (not examined), want to Banki Police Station and varbally reported the occurrence but no Station Diary Entry or report was produced as evidence.

(3.) AT the spot Ankura verbally reported the incident which was reduced into writing at 9 p. m. vide Ext. 1. In course of investigation, the police sent the dead body of the deceased for post mortem examination which was conducted by PW 5 Dr. Nirmal Kumar Misra. Ankura and his wife Kanchan were also sent for medical examination and they were examined by PW 4 Dr. Prasanna Kumar Padhi. After completion of investigation, charge sheet was submitted not only against the appellants but also against four others who have since been acquitted and the case having been committed, came to be triad in the Court of the Second Additional Sessions Judge, Cuttack.