RISHI PAL @ RAJU Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant has filed the present appeal for challenging the judgment and order dated 9/14.8.2012 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Karnal. Vide impugned judgment and order, the appellant was convicted under Section 120-B(1) IPC and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years and to pay a fine of Rs.10,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year. He was also convicted under Section 392 read with Section 120-B IPC and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years and to pay a fine of Rs.10,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year. Both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

(2.) The case of the prosecution, in nutshell, was that on 13.3.2010, complainant Naresh Kumar submitted a written complaint to the police, averring therein that he owned Tavera vehicle and plying it as a taxi from taxi stand at Nissing and availing the services of Jaspal as its driver. On 11.3.2010, between 12 noon and 2.00 p.m., three persons hired his taxi for going to Kairana (U.P.) and left for the said place. This fact was learnt by Ajay Kumar, who contacted Jaspal on his mobile phone. Jaspal stated that he was going to Kairana (U.P.) alongwith certain persons, who had hired his vehicle. Thereafter, neither the taxi of the complainant nor Jaspal could be traced out. The complainant apprehended that his driver Jaspal, alongwith the vehicle, had been kidnapped by those three persons who had hired his taxi being plied by him and they might have killed Jaspal. On the basis of the complaint submitted by Naresh Kumar, FIR under Section 364 read with Section 34 IPC was registered by SI Prem Singh. During investigation, the police party left for Rishikesh and on 14.3.2010 when it was still at Rishikesh, it received information from Police Station Thana Bhawan in District Muzaffar Nagar (U.P.) that a dead body of an unknown person had been located, which was lying in the Government Hospital, Muzaffar Nagar. Accordingly, SI Prem Singh, alongwith his fellow officials, reached the mortuary of the aforementioned hospital, where complainant Naresh Kumar and Rajinder Singh identified the dead body to be that of Jaspal. Inquest proceedings were conducted on the dead body. Offence under Section 302 IPC was added to the FIR. During further investigation, Inspector Jaspal Singh received a secret information regarding spotting of the taxi of complainant Naresh Kumar in village Badoli so as to sell it.

(3.) Accordingly, the police party set up a naka and took into possession the taxi, alongwith one Saleem. Said Saleem suffered disclosure statement that he alongwith his coaccused Rakib and Rashid used to purchase cattle from Haryana and sell the same in U.P. During this business, they came in contact with the present appellant, namely, Rishi Pal @ Raju and developed cordial relations with him. They used to stay with the appellant in his village. On 10.3.2010, they had called Rishi Pal @ Raju appellant on his mobile telling him that they required a bigger vehicle. Accordingly, they reached Karnal and met the appellant on 11.3.2010 at Nissing where they planned to snatch a bigger vehicle after hiring it from the taxi stand of Nissing and taking it to U.P., where they would subsequently sell it and divide the booty equally. Pursuant to the conspiracy hatched by them, the appellant told Saleem and others to hire the taxi belonging to complainant Naresh Kumar from the taxi stand of village Nissing. He took them to the taxi stand from where they hired the vehicle belonging to the complainant and being plied by Jaspal. The vehicle was, thereafter, taken to village Kairana in U.P. where Saleem and others killed Jaspal. Further, on 7.4.2010, the appellant, who was already arrested in case FIR No. 152 dated 5.4.2010, was arrested in the present case and he suffered a disclosure statement wherein he stated that he had helped the co-accused to hire a vehicle belonging to complainant Naresh Kumar so as to take the same from there to U.P. and after selling the same, to share the booty.