MANGRU SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All the three appeals mentioned above are taken up together for disposal as the first two appeals arise out of the common judgment while the third appeal although arises out of the separate judgment but relates to the same incident.

(2.) Seventeen accused persons including the three appellants of first two appeals mentioned above faced trial in Sessions Trial No. 201 of 1985 before the VIth Additional Sessions Judge, "Dhanbad (Camp at Chas) for the offences charged against them under Secs. 396 & 302,149 of the Penal Code & also under Sec. 412 of the Indian Penal Code against some of the accused persons.

(3.) The alleged occurrence relates to hair-raising hatred, riot and murder with arson, looting etc., in the wake of the murder of Ex-Prime Minister, Smt. Indira Gandhi at New Delhi allegedly by some Sikh persons. There were riots on that issue covering the whole of the country and one such incident occurred in between 9 to 9.30 AM., on 1-11-1984 at Dasmesh Nagar Colony of Marafari Police Station in Bokaro Steel City of the then district of Dhanbad. There was mass killing, looting, arsoning by non-Sikhs by entering into Jhopri Colony of Dasmesh Nagar at the alleged time and date and atrocities were committed almost in every house of the Sikh religion who were residing in that colony. There were in total fifteen persons killed in the case. Even small babies were not spared. They were taken out from the lap of their mother and killed instantaneously. There was also gruesome killing of living persons by sprinkling kerosene oil on them. It was also a horror tale and show of the mass upheaval and uprising against the Sikh community in general.