HARPAL SINGH Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE graver is the allegation the stricter is the proof, is the basic law of this land. Though the allegations of the prosecution are very shocking but if these allegations are proved beyond reasonable doubt, definitely the appellants do no deserve any sympathy either on the premises of law or on the premises of equity for committing a gang rape upon a woman who had come innocently to Ambala Cantt. to join her husband from Bihar. On moral consideration or for the fanciful story the liberty of a person cannot be curtailed. If the investigation in this case is totally defunct and it has not collected sufficient evidence nor it fixed the identity of the culprits, in that eventuality the prosecution must suffer. The benefit of all reasonable doubt is to go to the accused and not to the prosecution. If this Court gets a smell that a genuine culprit was allowed to go scot free by the police, in that eventuality the liability cannot be fastened upon the accused person. This impression I have been able to gather after going through the evidence of the case.

(2.) BY this judgment I will dispose of two Criminal Appeal Nos. 109/SB of 1998 titled Harpal Singh v. State of Haryana and Crl. Appeal No. 220/SB of 1998 titled Ashok Kumar and others v. State of Haryana as both the appeals have arisen from the judgment and order dated 23.1.1998 passed by the Court of Addl. Sessions Judge, Ambala who convicted the appellants under Section 376(2)(g) I.P.C., and vide order dated 28.1.1998 sentenced each of the appellants to undergo R.I. for a period of ten years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1000/- each. Each one of the appellants was directed to undergo further R.I. for a period of six months in case they do not deposit the fine. The story of the prosecution which has been stated at the trial is as follows :

(3.) ON 4.3.1996 Lal Babu, husband of the prosecutrix submitted application Ex.PK before Veer Bhan PW 17, Incharge, Police Post Parao, Ambala Cantt., on the basis of which FIR Ex.PK/1 was registered. The prosecutrix was sent to Civil Hospital, Ambala Cantt, where she was medico-legally examined. SI Veer Bhan visited the scene of occurrence and prepared rough site plan Ex.PP. He recorded the statement under Section 161 Cr.P.C. of the prosecutrix and Bhim Sain. Accused Arjun, Ashok Kumar and Mukesh were arrested and were got medically examined. Thereafter the investigation was entrusted to S.I. Shingara Singh PW14 who arrested the accused Jagdish on 26.3.1996 and accused Harpal Singh Bhatia on 31.3.1996. They were also medically examined. After completion of the investigation and other usual formalities a challan was presented and all the five accused were challaned in the Court of Illaqa Magistrate and vide committing order dated 14.8.1996, it committed the accused to the Court of Sessions. Vide orders dated 20.9.1996, charges under sections 376(g), 395 and 313 IPC were framed against the accused to which they pleaded not guilty and claimed trial.