GIRIJA SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE two appeals arise out of judgment and order of the 3rd Additional Sessions Judge, Nawadah in Sessions Trial No. 82/123 of 1985/86. There are two appellants each in both the appeals. They along with Manoj Kumar and Dilip Kumar were charged with being members of an unlawful assembly and committing murder of Sachchidanand Singh in prosecution of the common object of the unlawful assembly, punishable under Sections 302/149 of the Penal Code, and, further assaulting Parmanand Singh with an intention to kill him punishable under Section 307 of the Penal Code. Said Manoj Kumar and Dilip Kumar have been acquitted. Appellant Sharban Singh has been convicted under Section 302 of the Penal Code and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for life. Appellant Girija Singh has been convicted under Section 302/34 of the Penal Code and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for life. Appellant Awadhesh Prasad Singh has been convicted under Section 307 of the Penal Code and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for five years. Akhilesh Kumar @ Akhilesh Kumar Singh has been convicted under Section 323 of the Penal Code and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for one year.

(2.) THE prosecution was set in motion on the basis of Fardbeyan of Parmanand Singh recorded by A.S.I. of Police Raghubans Singh at Hasua State dispensary on 2.1.1985 at 1.30 P.M. as per the said version on 2.1.1985 at about 7 A.M. when his elder brother Sachchida Singh (or Sachchidanand Singh) went towards south of his house to tie his bullock, Sharwan Singh asked him not to do so. Sachchida Singh, however, tied the bullock saying that the land belonged to him and he would tie the bullock there. As soon as he said this, the accused persons (appellants and said Manoj Kumar and Dilip Kumar) variously armed came there and Girija Singh ordered to finish Sachchida Singh. On his order Sharwan Singh gave saif blow on Sachchida Singh which hit him on his head and he fell down. After he fell down, Manoj Kumar, Dilip Kumar and Akhilesh Kumar @ Akhilesh Kumar Singh gave lathi blows causing injury on his back. Parmanand Singh ran towards the place of occurrence to save his brother when Awadhesh Prasad Singh gave him saif blow on his head.

(3.) AT the trial which followed, the prosecution examined nine witnesses to prove its case, five of whom, namely, Bakeshwar Prasad Singh (P.W. 1), Babu Lal Singh (P.W. 2), Sumitra Devi (P.W. 3) and Mudrika Singh (P.W. 4), besides the informant Parmanand Singh (P.W. 5) were examined as material witnesses, all of whom stated to have seen the occurrence in the manner stated in the Fardbeyan. The prosecution also examined Dr. Jagdeo Prasad who examined the injuries on the person of the deceased as well as Parmanand Singh as P.W. 6 and Dr. Ram Krishna Prasad, who held post mortem on the deceased as P.W. 7 Raghubans Singh, who had conducted the investigation was examined as P.W. 9 while Balmiki Prasad who submitted chargesheet was examined as P.W. 8. The accused did not examine any witness in defence. They took the usual plea of innocence and false implication. At the end of the trial, the trial court convicted and sentenced the appellants while acquitting two others as mentioned above.