SATRUGHAN MAHTO Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The solitary appellant of Criminal Appeal No.474 of 1988 was charged under Sections 148 and 302 IPC and Section 27 of the Arms Act. The four appellants of Criminal Appeal no.488 of 1988 were charged under Sections 148 and 302/149 IPC and 27 of the Arms Act for being tried on Sessions Trial No.41 of 1984. The learned 3rd Additional Sessions Judge, Arrah held appellant Shatrughan Mahto guilty of committing the offences, he had been charged with and directed him to suffer rigorous imprisonment for two years under Section 148 of the IPC, rigorous imprisonment for life under Section 302 IPC and rigorous imprisonment for three years under Section 27 of the Arms Act. The four appellants of the other appeal were also found guilty of committing offences under Section 148, 302/149 of the IPC and Section 27 of the Arms Act and the same sentences were inflicted upon each of them under each of the Sections as was inflicted upon appellant Satrughan Mahto. These two appeals have been preferred by them against the above judgement rendered in Sessions Trial No.141 of 2003 on the 17th of August, 1988.

(2.) The informant Bindeshwari Singh(P.W.4) alleged in his fardbayan, Ext-3, that on 31.5.1983 at about 6.30 A.M., his son Ajay Singh was coming to his house from Pawna Bazar and when he had reached the road near the bridge in front of his house, all the appellants came on to the road. The appellant Bharat Mahto was armed with a DBBL licensed gun whereas the remaining appellants were armed with country made guns. The informant at that particular time was at the entrance of the gate of his house. It was alleged that appellant Indradeo Yadav remonstrated the other appellants to kill by saying that it was he(i.e., the deceased)who had got his brother killed in Sinha Mela. Satrughan Mahto, on the above remonstration fired at Ajay Singh, the son of the informant. He fell down there after being hit. The informant raised a hulla which attracted Bishwa Nath Singh(P.W.3)Lal Bahadur Singh(P.W.2) and Vijay Kumar Singh(P.W.1) who all came running and saw the occurrence. The appellants retreated from the place of occurrence making blank fires and disappeared into the lane from which they had emerged. The informant stated that he went near his son and found him soaked in blood but alive. The injured Ajay Kumar was picked up and the informant started for the hospital at Arrah and no sooner had he reached the hospital gate, than he found his son already dead.

(3.) On the basis of Ext-3, the FIR of the case, Ext-5 was drawn up and the investigation was started by P.W.6 S.I. Kailash Prasad who was the officer-in-charge of Sandesh police station and as per his evidence, he came to Arrah from Bhaiya Pawna at 2 A.M. and went into Arrah hospital. He found Vijay Kumar Singh(P.W.1)and the informant and his other relatives there. He received the fardbayan recorded by the A.S.I. Chandrakant Singh of Arrah town police station along with the inquest report, Ext-4 prepared by the said A.S.I.Chandrakant Singh. P.W.6, thereafter, recorded the statements of Bindeshwari Singh(P.W.4)the informant Bishwa Nath Singh(P.W.3), Lal Bahadur Singh(P.W.2) and Vijay Kumar Singh(P.W.1) in sadar hospital Arrah itself.