ASHOK RAI Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This criminal appeal has been preferred against Judgment of conviction and sentence Order dated 26.6.1995 passed by the learned 1st Additional Sessions Judge, Samastipur, in Sessions Trial No. 6 of 1987, arising out of Patory P.S. Case No. 19 of 1986, by which and whereunder he convicted the appellants for the offences punishable under Section 467 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced them to undergo rigorous imprisonment for ten years for the offence punishable under Section 467 of the Indian Penal Code and to undergo imprisonment for 2 1/2 years for the offence punishable under Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code. The learned trial court directed that the above stated sentences on each count shall run consecutively. It is pertinent to note here that by the impugned judgment, learned trial court acquitted the appellants from the charges framed against them for the offences punishable under Sections 302 and 302/201 of the Indian Penal Code.

(2.) It is pertinent to note here that the State of Bihar aggrieved by acquittal of appellants for the charges framed under Section 302, 302/201 of the Indian Penal Code preferred Government Appeal No. 35 of 1995, which was dismissed by a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated 26.9.1996.

(3.) Briefly stated prosecution case is that P.W. 7, Sukhlal Paswan, Chaukidar of Bit No. 1/7, gave his fard-e- beyan before S.I. of Patory P.S. on 13.2.1986 at about 10.00 A.M., to this effect, that in the night of 12.2.1986, Chaukidar Sita Ram Paswan (P.W. 6) gave information to him that a dead body was lying near well situated at Situahi Ghat. Having got the aforesaid information, he as well as P.W. 6 send Sital Rai to Hetanpur Centre for giving information in respect of the above stated information. P.W. 7 as well as P.W. 6 remained near the place of occurrence for whole night. The dead body could not be identified. P.W. 7, further, claimed that in the evening of 12.2.1986, when Fuleshwar Ram (P.W. 4) had gone to see his well, he noticed a gunny bag in the well. When he took out the aforesaid gunny bag and untied the gunny bag, one dead body of a women aged about 65 years came out from the aforesaid gunny bag. P.W. 7 claimed that some unknown persons having committed the murder of the aforesaid old woman threw the dead body in the above stated well.