KUBER SWAIN Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE judgment and sentence passed on 1st December, 2005 by the addl. Sessions Judge-cum-Judge, Special court, Bargarh in T. R. No. 98/25 of 2003 is assailed in this appeal.

(2.) BEREFT of unnecessary details, prosecution case as would be evident from the fir is that on 9th April, 2002 at about 8. 00 p. m. the informant P. W. 1 who was a Scheduled Tribe person and his neighbour P. W. 2 were gossiping in the house of the informant situated in village Phulapali. At that juncture the appellants forming an unlawful company came to the house of the informant and out of them appellant No. 3 Ganesh swain assaulted the informant by means of a stick. The other appellants cuffed him around. All the appellants thereafter pulled down a portion of the thatch of the house of the informant. When P. W. 2 protested against such action of the appellants, appellant no. 3 Ganesh Swain also assaulted him. Further the appellants abused, P. W. 1 in obscene language and insulted him in public. On the basis of the FIR lodged on 10-4-2002 Barpali P. S. Case No. 45 of 2002 was registered and after investigation charge-sheet was submitted against the appellants. The appellants stood charged under Sections 341, 323, 294, 427/34 of the Indian Penal Code read with Section 3 (x)of the SC and ST (PA) Act and faced trial. During trial, in order to substantive its case, prosecution got seven witnesses examined on its behalf of whom P. Ws. 1 and 2 were the injured, P. Ws. 3 and 4 were the eye-witness to the occurrence, P. W. 5 was a medical officer and P. Ws. 6 and 7 were the investigating officers. The appellants who denied the charges did not get any witness examined on their behalf. After threadbare discussion of the evidence, more particularly the medical evidence, and finding the statements of P. Ws. 1 and 2 worthy of credence the trial Court found the charge under Section 323 to have been well established against the appellants. However the trial Court held that the prosecution had signally failed to establish the charges under Sections 341, 294, 427 as also under Section 3 (x) of the SC and ST (PA)Act against the appellants. The trial Court convicted the appellants of the charge under Section 323, I. P. C. and after hearing them on the question of sentence, sentenced them to pay a fine of Rs. 600. 00 each, in default to undergo simple imprisonment for three months.

(3.) IT is pertinent to mention here that no appeal has been preferred by the informant or the State against acquittal of the appellants of the charges under Sections 341, 294 and 427/34, I. P. C. and under Section 3 (x)of the SC and ST (PA) Act which has therefore attained finality.