BIKRAMJIT SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellants have assailed judgment and order of sentence dated 30/3/2001 passed by the sessions Judge, Gurdaspur vide which they have been convicted for having committed an offence under Section 376 (2) (g) of the IPC and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for ten years and to pay fine of Rs. 5,000 each. In default of payment of fine, each of the defaulter was directed to undergo further rigorous imprisonment of six months.

(2.) ON 26/11/1998, Devinder Kaur daughter of Jarnail Singh, resident of village dehar, Tehsil Batala (hereinafter described as 'the prosecutrix'), a student of 10+1 Class, was returning home at about 12. 30 p. m. from the school. When she reached in front of the Haveli of Gurmej Singh alias Geja, some one called out to her by name. She stopped for a while and in the meantime, amandeep Singh son of Gurdial Singh, put a handkerchief on her mouth, whereas minta son of Piara Singh caught hold of her legs and both of them dragged her inside the Haveli of Gurmej Singh. She was taken to a room in the Haveli where Gurmej Singh and Bikka alias Bikramjit Singh son of gurdial Singh were already present. Thereafter, all the four persons (appellants herein) are said to have had sexual intercourse with her forcibly leaving her there after the act where she was discovered by lakhbir Kaur, her father's brother's wife, who, subsequently accompanied the prosecutrix to give the version to the police on 28/11/1998, on the basis of which formal FIR was recorded.

(3.) THE investigation was conducted by shri Darshanjit Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Dera Baba Nanak and Shri surinder Singh, Superintendent of Police (Headquarters), Batala, who found that kulbir Singh alias Minta, Gurmej Singh alias Geja and Amandeep Singh alias Aman were innocent. The challan was accordingly presented only against Bikramjit Singh alias Bikka and others were gdt discharged from the Court of Shri Harjinder Singh, Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Batala by filing an appropriate application.