ASHA RAM Vs. STATE OF H.P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All these petitions (Cr. M.P. (M) Nos. 261 to 263 and 265 to 267 of 2000) under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, praying for grant of bail to the accused/Petitioners (hereinafter referred to as the 'accused') arise out of the same First Information Report and are, therefore, disposed of by this common order.

(2.) Case FIR No. 13/2000 dated February 24, 2000 under Sections 302/147/148/149/201 of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against the accused persons and six others at Police Station Kandaghat. The other six co-accused being women, one of them being pregnant and others having to look-after the small children, cattle etc., have been released on bail by the learned Sessions Judge on the said considerations.

(3.) The case of the prosecution, in brief, is that on February 23, 2000 at about 6.30/7.00 p.m. one Ashwani Sood, resident of Shivshankar Garh, while returning after attending the case in the Court at Kandaghat, came running and crying towards his house and was followed by the accused and their co-accused. All the accused, except Lekh Ram, were arned with 'Dandas' and Lekh Ram was armed with 'Baltari'. They caught hold of Ashwani Sood and dragged him towards the road. The accused persons and their co-accused gave heatings to Ashwani Sood on the road and he was thereafter dragged towards the house of Satya Devi where he was again beaten up by the accused persons and their accomplices which resulted in his death on the spot.