BHAGWAN @ SHUSHU Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Appellant who is in custody for the last more than six years has preferred this appeal challenging his conviction and sentence under Section 449, 302, 201, 34 of the Indian Penal Code ('IPC' for short) as ordered by the trial court vide judgment/order dated 24.4.2008/28.4.2008.

(2.) On 16.2.2006, Assistant Sub Inspector Ashok Kumar posted as Incharge, Police Post Badli, received an information that house of Sultan Singh was on fire. He reached the spot along with other police officials. There he met complainant Sunil (daughter of Sultan Singh) and he recorded her statement. Complainant stated in her statement that her two brothers Sukhwinder and Surjit were earlier married in village Jat Shahpur. Sukhwinder and his wife were blessed with a daughter, namely Suman. Her brother Surjit was not blessed with any child out of his wedlock. After some time, her both brothers divorced their respective wives before a Panchayat.

(3.) Thereafter, her both brothers got remarried. From his second marriage, Sukhwinder was blessed with three children whereas her brother Surjit was blessed with two children. Suman, daughter of Sukhwinder, was residing with her (complainant) parents. Her both brothers were residing separately in village Badli. Her father Sultan Singh and mother Shakuntla were residing separately at Badli along with Suman. Her father had served with Indian armed forces. Sita, wife of Sukhwinder, had gone to her parental house. Her brother Surjit was demanding half of her father's pension but her father had declined to do so. Surjit used to threaten her father with dire consequences. Pushpa (wife of Surjit), uncle Sewa, Maya, Sita, Rohtash, Siri Bhagwan (elder brother-in-law of Surjit) and Ram Kumar (fatherin-law of Surjit) had also threatened her father and mother of dire consequences. In the intervening night, her father Sultan, mother Shakuntla, brother Sukhwinder and niece Suman were sleeping in the house of her parents. All the above persons had entered the house of her father with the help of a ladder and had murdered her parents, brother and niece Suman with the help of some sharp edged weapon. Thereafter, they had collected the dead bodies in one room and had set them on fire with the help of petrol. She had received the information qua the occurrence from her cousin brother Vijay on telephone and had reached the spot along with her husband.