ANAND KISHORE THAKUR Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard learned counsel for the appellants as well as learned Addl. Public Prosecutor for the State and perused the record.

(2.) This criminal appeal has been preferred against the judgment of conviction dated 27.6.2001 and order of sentence dated 28.6.2001 passed by learned Addl. Sessions Judge III, Madhubani in Sessions trial no. 110/1981 by which and whereunder he convicted the appellants for the offences punishable under sections 147, 429, 380 and 149/436 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced them to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years for the offence punishable under section 436 read with section 149 of the Indian Penal Code, to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year for each offences punishable under sections 147, 380, 429 of the Indian Penal Code and furthermore, each appellants were also sentenced to pay a fine of Rs 1000/- and in default of payment of fine, they were ordered to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three months. However, all the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

(3.) In brief, the prosecution case, is that P.W. 8, Kari Paswan gave his fardbeyan to Sub Inspector of Khajauli police station, namely, C.S.P. Singh on 11.5.1975 to this effect that appellant no.1, namely, Anand Kishore Thakur and his wife were robbed by some miscreants in the night of 9.5.1975 while they were returning to their home and appellant no.1 as well as his supporters suspected that miscreants of Mohanpur village had committed the aforesaid occurrence of robbing. On 10.5.1975 at about 9 a.m. appellant no.1, accused Buchchi Thakur and Tej Narain Jha came at Mohanpur village and enquired about the above stated occurrence of robbing, appellant no.1 disclosed that he had identified one Upendra Paswan. Informant and other villagers told the aforesaid persons that guilty persons would be handed over to them but again on 11.5.1975 at about 9 to 9.30 a.m. while informant was at his house he noticed that unlawful mob of three to four thousand persons armed with deadly weapons were coming towards his village and Tej Narain Jha, Umesh Jha (appellant no.4), Anand Kishore Thakur (appellant no.1) and Bucchi Thakur were leading the aforesaid unlawful mob and Saryug Jha, Rajendra Jha and Sitaram Jha armed with bhala and other weapons were also present in the said mob. The aforesaid unlawful mob came at his village and persons who were leading to the unlawful mob, ordered others to set the houses on fire and also commit loot and thereafter Tej Narain Jha made a firing. Informant as well as his villagers left their houses out of fear and fled to some distance from where they witnessed the alleged occurrence. He further stated that some persons went Babubarhi block and police station to give information about the alleged occurrence. The aforesaid persons of unlawful mob set, altogether, 42 houses on fire and also committed loot from the aforesaid houses. The house hold articles as well as some cattles of the aforesaid houses were burnt. He further stated that having got information regarding the aforesaid occurrence, BDO and police officials came at his village and apprehended five persons, namely, Matar Mandal, Jagdish Mandal, Ramfal Mandal, Bahir Rai as well as Nandlal Yadav.