MANJIT SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant was charge sheeted for committing an offence punishable under Section 376 IPC on the allegations that on 4.10.2001 he had raped two years' old grand daughter of complainant Swaran Singh. Vide impugned judgment and order dated 28.8.2003, the Additional Sessions Judge (Ad hoc), Jalandhar convicted the appellant for the aforementioned offence and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of ten years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/ - and in default of the same, to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for six months. The period already spent by him in custody was ordered to be set off against his substantive sentence of imprisonment. Hence, the present appeal by the appellant wherein he has prayed for setting aside the impugned judgment of conviction and sentence and for his acquittal of the said charge.

(2.) THE case of the prosecution, in nutshell, is that on 4.10.2001 at about 2.30 p.m., the prosecutrix was playing in front of her house and when she did not return, the complainant started searching for her. Even an announcement was made on the loudspeaker in the village, pursuant to which, the villagers started searching for her. When the complainant, alongwith Balbir Singh, while searching the prosecutrix, was proceeding on the metalled road and reached near the sugarcane field of Jarnail Singh, they heard the cries of a child. Both of them went towards the said field and saw the appellant running away after leaving the prosecutrix there. The prosecutrix was bleeding from her private parts. The appellant had taken the prosecutrix from outside her house to the fields and had committed rape upon her. The complainant then made statement Ex.PE before ASI Dev Raj and on its basis, FIR No. 34 dated 4.10.2001 (Ex.PE/2) was recorded against the appellant under Section 376 IPC at Police Station Bilga.

(3.) IN support of its case, the prosecution examined ten witnesses. PW1 Dr. N.K. Singh testified that he conducted medico - legal examination of the prosecutrix and observed tear on the left side of labia minus and fresh blood. He, thereafter, referred the prosecutrix to the gynaecologist. PW2 Bhag Ram, Patwari proved the scaled site plan Ex.PA. PW3 Shinda, Chowkidar of the village proved the birth entry of the prosecutrix. PW4 HC Joginder Ram and PW5 Constable Anwar Masih tendered in evidence their affidavits Ex.PC and Ex.PD, respectively. Complainant Swaran Singh stepped into the witness -box as PW6 and supported the prosecution case. PW7 HC Bakhshish Lal tendered in evidence his affidavit Ex.PF. PW8 Balbir Singh, who had accompanied the complainant to the place of occurrence, did not support the prosecution case and was declared hostile. PW9 Prem Singh testified that he made announcement on the loudspeaker of the Gurudwara regarding disappearance of the prosecutrix. PW10 ASI Dev Raj deposed about the various steps taken by him during investigation of the case. The prosecution also tendered in evidence report Ex.PS of the Forensic Science Laboratory before closing its evidence.