SANJEEV KUMAR Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has challenged his conviction under Sections 279, 337 and 304-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) concurrently recorded by the Courts below and sentences awarded to him. He was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year and to pay fine of L 500/-, in default of payment of fine to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for two months under Section 304- A IPC; rigorous imprisonment for three months and to pay fine of L 500/-, in default to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one month under Section 337 IPC and three months of rigorous imprisonment and fine of L 500/-, in default of payment of fine to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one month under Section 279 IPC. All the sentences were to run concurrently.

(2.) First Information Report (FIR) was regis- tered on the statement of Sucha Singh injured an employee of Bharat Gas Factory, Lalru. Tata Sumo No. HR-55AT-5779 was engaged by the employer, for carrying the employees to and fro, the factory premisses. On 14.07.2005, after the factory hours they started in the said vehicle at 10.00 p.m. Inder Pal Singh PW-3 was the driver. Other employees of the factory, namely; Baldev Singh, Harish Malik, Gurcharan Singh and Rajinder Singh were the other occupants of Tata Sumo. When their vehicle reached in the area of Village Golumajra near S.P. Spring Factory towards Dera Bassi at about 10.25 p.m. that the offending truck No. HR-37-5348 came from the opposite direction. The truck was being driven very rashly and negligently and rammed into the Tata Sumo. The impact was so huge that Tata Sumo fell on one side of the road and the offending truck also turned turtle. The driver of the truck fled from the spot. The occupants of Tata Sumo were also entangled in the vehicle. The passersby extricated them from the vehicle and the complainant was brought to the Civil Hospital, Dera Bassi from where he was referred to Civil Hospital, Chandigarh. The complainant later on learnt that his companions Baldev Singh, Harish Malik, Gurcharan Singh and Rajinder Singh had all died at the spot.

(3.) Sucha Singh (PW-1) and Inder Pal Singh driver of Tata Sumo (PW-3) testified that petitioner was the driver of offending truck and that truck driver was rash and negligent in driving his vehicle on the public highway.