DEVENDRA CHOUDHARY Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All these three appellants have been convicted under sections 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code for causing the death of one Rampati Choudhary and each of them has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life. They have been further convicted under section 201 of the Indian Penal Code and have been sentenced to undergo rigorous Imprisonment for five years each with a direction that both the sentences would run concurrently.

(2.) The prosecution case, in short, is that on 25th September, 1979, at about 7 a.m. the informant Ramnandan Choudhary (P.W. 12) has gone to the house of Ramji Yadav (P.W. 4) to purchase and collect milk to perform the shradh ceremony of the uncle of Shri Ram Choudhary. He set at the darwaja of Ramji Yadav (P.W. 4) alongwith Rampati Choudhary (the deceased), Bhadri Choudhary (P.W. 11) and Sri ram Choudhary (P.W. 10). In the meantime, these three appellants came there from north and surrounded the informant and his colleagues. Rampati Choudhary ran towards north but he was chased by these appellants who were armed with pistols. Appellant Devendra Choudhary fired his pistol which could hit on the arm of Rampati Choudhary and appellant Sanjiwan Choudhary fired his pistol which could hit on the right thigh of Rampati Choudhary. Rampati fell down near the road and thereafter appellant. Devendra said Sala Jeenda hai. Thereafter appellant Navin Choudhary fired his pistol on his chest. After the assault, the appellants tried to take away the deceased but, in the meantime, villagers came and then the appellants fled away. After the occurrence, Ram Chanter Dafadar (P.W. 13), Siyaram Chowkidar (P.W. 9) and Moti Paswan Chowkidar came. They learnt about the occurrence including the name of these appellants to be the assailants of the deceased, from the Informant. Chowkidar Siyaram (P.W. 9) was sent to the police station and the Dafadar (P.W. 13) and the informant remained near the dead body. On the same day at about 2 p.m. these three appellants alongwith three other accused persons, namely, Diwakar Choudhary Ramanand Choudhary and Arbind Choudhary who have already been acquitted by the court below, came on horse-back with arms and took away the dead body of Rampati Choudhary in spite of protest. The dead body of Rampati could not be discovered thereafter.

(3.) The Investigating Officer Buoy Kumar Gupta (P.W. 14) came to the place of occurrence on the same day at about 6 p.m. and recorded the statement of the informant Ramanand Choudhary (P.W. 12) on the basis of which a regular case was instituted. He tool up the Investigation and after completing the same, submitted charge-sheet against six accused persons including these three appellants. They were all put on trial in course of which as many as 15 witnesses were examined on behalf of the prosecution. The appellants denied the allegation and pleaded their innocence. No witness was, however, examined on their behalf.