VIJAY KUMAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN spite of having waited for the counsel for the appellants, no one turns up. Lastly we heard Shri Abhimanyu Sharma, the learned Additional Public Prosecutor, who appears on behalf of the State, and perused the record and proceeded to pass the present judgment.

(2.) THE two appellants were convicted by the learned Sessions Judge, West Champaran, Bettiah in Sessions Trial No. 106 of 1988 by judgment dated 6th of July, 1991 of committing offence under Sections 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code. Appellant Ram Chandra Bin was held distinctly guilty of committing the offence under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and both the appellants were directed to suffer rigorous imprisonment for life.

(3.) P .W. 2 Lakshmi Sah did support the prosecution story that Bishwanath Sah was murdered, but stated that he did not identify any of the assailants of the deceased. As regards P.W. 3 the informant he came in support of his story and claimed to have identified the accused persons in the light of the lantern. The lantern was not produced nor the Investigating Officer was examined. The informant himself admitted that it was a pitch dark night. We are of the opinion that visibility was not possible without light. The further evidence of the informant was that as soon as he heard the gun shot he fled from there to conceal himself in a plantain orchard and remained there for about 40 minutes and came out only when his family members had arrived at the scene of occurrence. After considering the evidence of P.W. 3 Lallan Sah what we find is that there is doubt that he could have identified the accused persons. Sumari Devi the mother of the informant and wife of the deceased and other witnesses like P.W. 5 Bal Kishun Sah and others did not identify any of the accused persons.