JARNAIL SINGH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS revision has been directed against the judgment/order dated 9th August, 1995 delivered by the Court of learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chandigarh, whereby he convicted and sentenced the accused-petitioner to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of six months under Section 279 of IPC and to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year under Section 304-A of IPC and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000/- or in default thereof to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for three months, with a further direction that the substantive sentences shall run concurrently, as well as judgment dated 17th April, 1996 rendered by the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge, Chandigarh, vide which he dismissed the appeal.

(2.) SUCCINCTLY put, facts of the prosecution case are that on 4.11.1991, Gurdial Singh made statement before SI Nirmal Singh in the terms that he was employed as a Clerk with Shri A.P.S. Deol, Advocate, Panjab and Haryana High Court, Chandigarh, and on that day, he was going on his Scooter bearing registration No. CHT-7102 to the market. When he reached the turning of Sectors 9 and 10 around 3.45 P.M., he saw one Moped Luna approaching from Civil Secretariat side on its correct side. The Moped's driver gave the signal with the right hand for having a turn towards Sector 10. Meanwhile, CTU Bus bearing registration No. CH-01-5237 came from the side of Civil Secretariat being driven rashly and negligently and at a very high speed and it struck in the back of Moped. The Moped was dragged to some distance by the Bus and it struck in the front wheel of the Bus. He stopped his Scooter and found that the person driving the Moped was lying dead. The name of the Bus Driver was revealed to be Jarnail Singh. The aforementioned SI made his endorsement on the above statement and sent the same to Police Station North, Chandigarh, where on its basis, formal FIR under Sections 279/337/304-A of IPC was registered. The investigator prepared the rough site-plan of the place of recovery, despatched the dead body of Jaspal Singh for post-mortem examination, got the vehicles mechanically tested, arrested the accused and after completion of investigation, presented the challan in the Court for trial of the accused. The accused was charged under Sections 279/304-A of IPC to which he did not plead guilty and claimed trial.

(3.) ON close of the prosecution evidence, the accused was examined under Section 313, Cr.P.C. He has come up with the plea that I was driving the Bus slowly and when I reached near the turning of Sectors 9 and 10, the driver of the Moped, all of a sudden took a turn towards Sector 10 without giving signal. He tried to turn towards Sector 10 in a short-cut way without going on the roundabout. I tried my level best to save him but he, after seeing the Bus, became perplexed and left his Moped and he himself hit the road. This accident was not the result of rash and negligent driving by him. In fact, it has been caused because of the wrong turning of the deceased by taking a short-cut and without giving any signal and that PW-Gurdial Singh, who is closely related to the deceased, was not present at all at the spot and he came after 20-25 minutes after hearing the news of the accident and the Police made him a witness intentionally being related to the deceased. He offered to lead defence evidence but without leading any evidence in defence, he closed his defence.