SANOHLA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal has been filed by the sole appellant who has been convicted under Section 302 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sentenced to imprisonment for life while having been acquitted of various other charges including charges in relation to Sections 364, 201, 153A of IPC. The learned Additional Sessions Judge VII, Bhagalpur has passed the said order of conviction and sentence in Sessions Trial No. 145 of 1990 dated 10th of October, 1991.

(2.) THE prosecution case is based upon a written information given with the thumb impression of the informant Md Hamid (PW 5) originally filed before the Sanhaulla Police Station (PS) later forwarded to Kahalgaon PS on 11.11.1989, inter alia, stating that on 29.10.1989 while the informant (PW 5) Md Hamid alongwith seven other persons were returning from Bhagalpur to their village Ghogha, two persons decided to return by train to Bhagalpur from Ghogha station itself. The remaining six persons then from Ghogha station started walking to their village. The moment they reached Janidih, they were allegedly surrounded by seven to eight persons. Allegedly, the appellant was armed with the kata (similar to a butcher knife). Out of the six persons in the accompaniment of the informant, appellant is supposed to have cut the neck of Md Zafir and Md Jumman on the spot. They died. Then those people took two of them that is Sheikh Maru and Md Quasim to an orchard. Informant tried to escape when some of those people tried to apprehend him. Kumhar Pandit of village Hanuwara came to the informant's rescue stating that he was his man. Informant's life was spared. The written information clearly states that the occurrence is of 29.10.1989 at 11 am. It is undated and it does not contain any explanation for the delay because it is being filed on 11.11.1989 before Sanhaulla PS though the place of occurrence falls within Kahalgaon PS. It is, accordingly, forwarded by the Officer -in -charge, Sanhaulla PS Chandranandan Jha (PW 8) to Kahalgaon PS for registering First Information Report (FIR) where, on the same day that is 11.11.1989, FIR is registered and Upendra Narayan Singh (PW 7) is entrusted with investigation. Upon completion of investigation, chargesheet is filed only against the appellant and several unknown for offence, inter alia, under Section 302 of IPC. Upon cognizance being taken, the case was committed to the Court of Session for trial where charges were framed under five heads to which the appellant pleaded not guilty and required to be tried.

(3.) AS noted above, the appellant has been acquitted of all other charges as not established except Section 302 of IPC.