RAJESH KUMAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE three appeals are directed against the judgment dated 21.2.2002 passed by Sri Jamilur Rahman, 2nd Additional Sessions Judge, Patna in Sessions Trial No. 716 of 2000 by which he has convicted the appellants Santoo Singh and Ranjan Kumar Singh @ Rajan Singh under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 27 of the Arms Act and appellants Rajesh Kumar Singh and Chandan Kumar Singh under section 302/149 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 27 of the Arms Act and has sentenced all the appellants to undergo imprisonment for life and also to pay a fine of Rs. 5000/ - each and further sentenced them to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three years under section 27 of the Arms Act with a direction that the substantive sentence would run concurrently. As all these three appeals arise out of the same Sessions Case, they have been heard together and are being disposed of by this common judgment.

(2.) THE prosecution case, as disclosed from the Fardbeyan of the informant Chandra Mohan Pandey is that on 27.7.1999 he was returning to his village Lakhanpur, P.S. Punpun district Patna alongwith his brother Dhirendra Pandey (deceased) and his wife after purchasing house hold articles from Punpun Bazar. At about 6.00 P.M. when they were crossing the school situated west of their village, Dhirendra Pandey was moving ahead of them and at that time all on a sudden appellants Santu Singh, Ranjan Kumar Singh, Chandan Kumar Singh, Rajesh Kumar Singh and one Ajay Kumar Singh, all armed with Pistols, accused Bhupendra Kumar Singh and Arjun Singh belonging to village Lakhanpur arrived there and appellants Chandan Kumar Singh, Rajesh Kumar Singh and co -accused Ajay Kumar Singh caught hold of Dhirendra Pandey and co -accused Bhupendra Singh and Arjun Singh exhorted to kill him. Appellant Santu Singh fired with his Pistol on Dhirendra Pandey on his head, Appellant Ranjan Kumar Singh also fired on his head. Dhirendra Pandey fell down and appellant Santu Singh again fired on the axillary region. The informant and the deceased's wife shouted for help when accused Arjun Singh pushed him down and accused Bhupendra Singh pushed down the wife of his brother. The witnesses rushed and the appellants and other accused persons fled away. It is further said that the informant then with the help of other witnesses was carrying the injured to Punpun when they met the police of Punpun on the way and with their help, they took the injured to the Emergency -ward of the P.M.C.H., Patna where he was declared dead.

(3.) ON the same night at 9,10 P.M. the Fardbeyan (Ext. 4) of the informant was recorded by S.I. Jai Narayan Prasad, the then Officer -in -charge of Punpun police station at the Emergency -ward of P.M.C.H., Patna. On the basis of the Fadbeyan, a formal F.I.R. was drawn up. The police investigated the case and after completing investigation submitted charge -sheet against the appellants and co -accused Aditya Singh and the investigation against other co -accused continued.