GURBACHAN SINGH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The following five cases arising out of the same transaction of recovery of opium involve identical facts and common questions :-

(2.) The arguments were mainly addressed in the last case, namely, Criminal Revision No. 328 of 1972 entitled as Gurbachan Singh v. State of Punjab. The facts in that case are as under :-

(3.) At the trial, the case of the prosecution whether pertaining to the recovery of opium or to that of pistol and cartridges was supported by the testimony of Surjit Singh, Sub-Inspector P.W. 1, Gian Chand P.W. 2, Partap Singh Assistant Sub-Inspector P.W. 3 and Joginder Nath P.W. 4. The petitioners denied the allegations and pleaded that they had been falsely implicated by the police. In particular, the defence of Gurbachan Singh petitioner was that he had been roped in because if his inimical relations with Partap Singh, Assistant Sub-Inspector. His plea was that in 1961-62, while posted as Naib Moharrir at police Station, Patti, Partap Singh was working as Assistant Sub-Inspector Incharge Police Post at Sarban, that he did not enter in his salary bill the house allowance due to him, that in 1965-66, he and Partap Singh were both posted at Police Station Saddar, Amritsar, that Partap Singh wanted to occupy the house in village Tung belonging to Ravinder Singh by outing him, that Partap Singh took into possession the licence and revolver of Ravinder Singh and got his licence cancelled and that it was as a result of the assistance rendered by him to Ravinder Singh that his licence as against the wishes of Partap Singh had been restored.