GAYA BHAKTA Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants preferred this appeal against the judgment dated 20-12-1982 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Balasore in S.T. No. 46 of 1982 convicting them under S. 395, Indian Penal Code and sentencing each of them to seven years' R.I.

(2.) The prosecution case, briefly stated, is that on 9-11-1981 at about 5 to 5.30 P.M. as P.Ws. 1 to 6, 10 and others were returning from Raibania weekly market crossing the road by the side of the jungle near Dhanghera, the appellants along with several others numbering about 15 to 20 persons armed with deadly weapons like lathis, tangia, bows and arrows, attacked and assaulted the said P.Ws. and others and carried away the various articles such as cycles etc., belonging to them and after the dacoits had left, P. W. 1 reported about the occurrence at the Raibania P.S. and the said report was treated as the FIR in the case and on the basis of that FIR police proceeded with the investigation of the case and ultimately sent up the appellants for trial.

(3.) The appellants plead that they were in no way involved in the occurrence of dacoity said to have taken place on 9-11-1981 near the Raibania weekly market, but they were falsely implicated. They did not examine any witness in support of their case.