JABID ALI AND ORS. Vs. TRIPURA ADMINISTRATION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant Jabid Ali was convicted and sentenced to 7 years' R. I. Under Section 397 Indian Penal Code and the other two appellants Cherag Ali and Rakib Ali were convicted and sentenced to five years R. I. each Under Section 395 Indian Penal Code, by the Assistant Sessions Judge, Tripura In sessions case No. ii of 1961. They have filed this appeal against the said convictions and sentences. There were six other with her other accused in the sessions case but they were acquitted.

(2.) THE prosecution case was as follows: At about 1 A. M. on 15 -3 -59 there was a dacoity in the house of Ahammad Ali, P.W. 5 in Bilthai village. The house consisted of 3 rooms. In the middle room Ahmmad Ali and'his little son Abdul Majid P.W. 3 aged 12 were sleeping with a kupi lamp burning in between their beds. On the northern and southern sides of the said room there were two other rooms divided by partitions of about 4f cubits in height and they said rooms had intercommunicating doors with the middle room. In the northern room Ahammad Ali's son Majid P.W. 7 was sleeping with his wife and children and the intercomputing door P.W. 4 Roop Jan Bibi the wife of Ahmad Ali's was sleeping with her other children and the intercommunicating door was said to have been kept open.

(3.) IMMEDIATELY , other people came to the place. Among them were P.Ws. 1 and 6; the sons -in -law of Ahammad Ali and P. Ws 10 and 11, two Sirdars of the village. To them Ahammad Ali was said to have mentioned the name of appellant Jabid Ali and Roop Jan Bibi those of appellants Rakib Ali and Cherag Ali. The first information report was lodged at Dharmanagar about 20 miles away by P.W. 1 Makbul Ali at about 3 P. M. on the same day. In the F.I.R. the names of the 3 appellants are mentioned as among the dacoits: and Jabid Ali was said to have been recognized by Ahammad Ali and Rakib Ali and Cherag Ali by Roop Jan Bibi. Bimal Das Gupta, P.W. 9, "A. S. I. was then the officer in charge of the police station in the absence of H. P. Majumder, P.W. 12. P.W. 9 proceeded to the spot the same evening and took the statements of all the witnesses. Subsequently, H. P. Majumder, P.W. 12 returned and he took up the investigation on 20 -3 -59 of it appears that on 23 -3 -59, he also took the statements of the prosecution witnesses, and after completing the investigation, he filed the charge -sheet against the 3 appellants and 6 others Under Sections 395 and 397 Indian Penal Code.