SUDAMA CHAUDHARY & ORS Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Among the appellants, Sudama Chaudhary, Mathura Chaudhary, Harilal Chaudhary and Hira Chaudhary suffered conviction under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code for which they were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a term of 10 years each. As for Jawahir Chaudhary, Badri Chaudhary and Chandrama Chaudhary, they suffered conviction under Section 307/34 of the Indian Penal Code for which they were sentenced to same term of imprisonment. All the appellants suffered conviction under Sections 147 and 148 of the Indian Penal Code and though on second count, they were sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for a term of one year, for the first count no sentence was awarded to them. Those who suffered on two counts, their sentences were directed to run concurrently.

(2.) The essential features of the prosecution which are not in much details, can be discussed with brevity. It was alleged that in the evening of 31st May, 1990, while Babban Chaudhary and his son Parma Chaudhary were returning to their village from village Surwala and were hardly at a distance of 1 k.m. north to their village, the appellants holding arms emerged from a nearby sugarcane field near orchard and encircled them and dealt blows on them. It was alleged that when Babban Chaudhary wanted to escape, Hira Chaudhary dealt a farsa blow in his neck and after he dropped injured, Mathura Chaudhary and Harilal Chaudhary dealt indiscriminate blows with bhala on him. As for complicity of other appellants, it was alleged that when Parma Chaudhary too wanted to escape, Sudama Chaudhary dealt bhala blow in his armpit, and when informant Gopal Chaudhary came for rescue, he too was assaulted by Jawahir Chaudhary, Ashrafi Chaudhary, Badri Chaudhary and Chandrama Chaudhary by hard and blunt substance and also bhala. He is alleged to have sustained injury above the left eye, in armpit, abdomen and also on finger of left hand, when he dropped injured. The incident was allegedly witnessed by Laxman Chaudhary, Ramparti Chaudhary, Bidhya Chaudhary and others, After the Police was set in motion on behest of Gopal Chaudhary who claimed to have witnessed the incident from a nearby field, as usual, investigation followed, in course of which the Police recorded statement of witnesses under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, got the injured clinically examined by the doctor, visited place of occurrence and on conclusion of investigation, laid charge-sheet before the Court. At the eventual trial, the prosecution examined altogether 10 witnesses and those examined by the State include the injured, the person who set the law in motion and also those who claimed to have witnessed the incident. Other witnesses examined on behalf of the State are not on material particulars of the incident.

(3.) The defence of the appellants before the trial Court and this Court had been that of innocence, and they ascribed their false implication. However, the trial Judge on evaluating the probative value of testimony of the witnesses, while negativing the plea of innocence of the appellants, recorded finding of guilt and sentenced them in the manner stated above.