KHALIL KHAN Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Both the appellants have been convicted under Section 412 of the Indian Penal Code and have been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for eight years each. It appears that they along with eleven others were also tried on the charge under Section 395 of the Indian Penal Code, but they have been acquitted of this charge by the learned trial court.

(2.) The prosecution case is that in between 6th and 7th March, 1973 the informant, namely, Ayodhya Pandey (P.W. 9), was sleeping on the roof of his Dalan. At about midnight he woke up on the cries raised by the female inmates of his house and then he came out of the room and saw some persons standing in front of his house. They were also flashing torches. The informant also flashed torch in the light of which he identified a number of them by name. All those persons who were apparently dacoits were taking out articles from his house. After the retreat of the dacoits the informant came down. At about the same time the villagers, to wit, P. Ws. 1, 2, 4 and 5 and same others came there. These witnesses also claimed to have identified some dacoits by face. The informant also learnt that his mother and wife had sustained injury at the hands of the dacoits.

(3.) On the following morning the informant went to the police station and lodged a first information report, on the basis of which a case was registered on the following day i. e. on 8-3-1973. The investigating officer searched the houses of these two appellants and recovered a number of articles which were subsequently identified at a test identification parade by some of the prosecution witnesses. After completing investigation, the police submitted charge-sheet against the thirteen persons, all of whom were tried by the learned Additional Sessions Judge with the result as stated above.