STATE OF HP Vs. PARSHOTAM SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) :- Heard and gone through the record.

(2.) STATE has appealed against the Judgment of the trial court whereby the respondents, numbering 15, who were charged with and tried for offences, punishable under Ss. 147 and 302, read with S. 149 of the Indian penal Code, have been acquitted.

(3.) FIRST, we may sum up the prosecution version. Deceased-Rai Singh, it appears, had been booked for an offence of rape, at the instance of one of the respondents, namely rattani Devi. She claimed to be the victim of the said offence of rape. Two days prior to the occurrence (the occurrence took place on 12th February, 1992), the deceased was granted bail in the aforesaid rape case. On the day of occurrence, he was allegedly overpowered in village Dathi by all the fifteen respondents. His hands and feet were tied with a rope at the shop of respondent-Gian chand alias Johndu Ram son of Sant Ram and then he was given a sound thrashing by all the respondents. A bicycle chain was used as a weapon of offence. Besides that some Lathis were also used to cause the injuries. The lady respondents allegedly gave shoe-beating to the deceased. The beating continued for about 12 hours and ultimately at 9 p. m. deceased Rai Singh breathed his last. Report was lodged with the police by p. W. 3 Madan Lal,a brother of deceased Rai singh. Copy of the report is Ex. PC. As per this report, on 12th February, 1992, at 4. 30 p. m. , when P. W. 3 Madan Lal, the lodger of the report, was present at a place called surani, some people told him that his brother Rai Singh was being beaten up by the residents of village Dathi and that when he reached near the shop of respondent-Gian Chand in village Dathi, he saw respon-dents-Parshotam Singh, Pradhan of Gram panchayat Dathi, Balwant Singh, Up-Pradhan Gian Chand, Pritam Chand, Rasila ram, Shakuntla, Ram Singh, Puran Chand, kaur Chand, Man Singh, Babu Ram, sister-in-law (Bhabi) of Jai Chand, wife of Man chand, Bihari Lal. Raj Kumar son of Ram dittu, Chowkidar of Baggi, had caught hold of his brother Rai Singh and were giving beatings to him. Man Singh, Amar Singh son of Asha Ram, Amar Singh son of Rattan chand and Mohinder Singh son of Milkhi were witnessing the occurrence. It was further reported that P. W. 3 Madan Lal, the lodger of the report, then went to his house to Inform his father and when he, accompanied by his father, returned to the place of occurrence, Rai Singh was lying dead in the verandah of the shop of respondent-Gian chand.