KURRA Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) KURRA , Jaibir and Raghubir, appellants, were convicted by the Additional Sessions Judge, Hissar, for offences punishable under sections 325/452, Indian Penal Code read with section 34, Indian Penal Code, and each one of them was sentenced to undergo one year rigorous imprisonment, besides to pay Rs. 500/- each on both the counts or in default of payment of fine to further undergo three months rigorous imprisonment. Mst. Dhan Kaur appellant has directed Appeal No. 14-SB of 1986 against the above-referred order of the trial Court, whereby she was also convicted for the above referred offences, but released on probation for a period of two years on furnishing personal bonds etc. She was also burdened with Rs. 500/- as costs of litigation. Out of the fine, if realised, Rs. 1000/- were to be paid to Rameshwar injured and Rs. 500/- to Bhateri P.W. as compensation. Both the sentences were however ordered to run concurrently. Both these appeals, as well as Criminal Revision No. 1554 of 1985 filed by Rameshwar and Mst. Bhateri injured for enhancement of sentence shall be disposed of by this order as these rest upon the same evidence and arise out of the same order of the trial Court.

(2.) IN brief, the facts are that the houses of the accused and the injured located in village Muklan adjoin each other. There was some dispute between Rameshwar P.W. with Kurra accused for payment of expenses of the common wall of their house on which the latter had constructed a room. The matter was allegedly got patched up by the police. On the evening of occurrence., Rameshwar P.W. again demanded the payment of above-referred amount from Kurra, but the letter threatened him to teach a lesson. With this background on 10th March, 1985, at about 5 00 in the morning, all the above referred accused-appellants carrying dangs entered the house of Rameshwar P.W. from the roof. Raghubir accused had opened the lid of the box lying there, when Mst. Bhateri (P.W. 5) paternal aunt of Rameshwar (P.W. 4) returned to the house after answering the call of nature and raised alarm. All the accused then gave injuries to her with their respective weapons. Her hue and cry attracted Rameshwar (P W. 4), who was serving fodder to his cattle in the same house. He also tried to intervene and was given injuries by all the four accused. Hazari husband of Mst. Bhateri also reached the spot and saw the occurrence. Dalbir, a resident of that locality also arrived there and allegedly saw the occurrence. During their testimony at the trial both these injured witnesses stated that Rameshwar P.W. was also carrying a denda and gave injuries to Kurra accused in self-defence, but such was not their version at the investigation stage. All the accused then went away. Both the injured were removed to Civil Hospital Hissar, where Dr. Surinder Singh (P.W. 2) examined Rameshwar at 8.30 a.m. and found seven injuries with blunt weapon on his person, out of which injury No. 4 on the right thumb was ultimately declared grievous as his X-ray examination revealed the fracture of proximal phallanx. Dr. Surinder Singh also examined Mst. Bhateri at 9.00 a.m. on the morning of the occurrence and found five blunt weapon simple injuries on her person. The doctor despatched intimation Ex. PE I alongwith medicolegal reports of these injured witnesses to the police station, on receipt of which head Constable Ishwar Singh (P.W. 7) rushed to the hospital and recorded statement. Exh PG of Rameshwar. The statement was concluded at 5.00 P.M. and on its basis a report in the daily diary of the police station was recorded at 5.50 p. m. by A. S. I. Harish Kumar as by then no cognizable effence was disclosed. Thereafter, on 27th March, 1985 after the receipt of X-ray report declaring injury No 4 of Rameshwar (P.W. 4) as grievous in nature, formal F.I.R. EX. PC/4 was recorded at the police station by this A. S. I. He then inspected the spot and prepared its rough site plan Ex. PJ, besides recording the statements of Bhateri, Hazari and Dalbir, eyewitnesses. It is note-worthy that Kurra accused was also medically examined on the evening of the occurrence by Dr. Narinder Chakarwati (P.W.6) at Primary Health Centre, Mangli and four blunt weapon simple injuries were observed on his person. After completion of investigation, all the accused were arraigned for trial by submitting the charge-sheet before the Judicial Magistrate who committed the case to the Court of Sessions as offence under section 459, Indian Penal Code was exclusively triable by that court.

(3.) KURRA accused before the trial Court set up the plea of self-defence which is as follows :-