STATE OF J&K Vs. SUNDER DAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Acquittal Appeal is directed against the judgment of 2nd Addl.Sessions Judge Jammu dated 24.2.1997 whereby the respondents -accused who were tried for commission of offences under sections 302/307,read with Sec.34 RPC and 4/27 Indian Arms Act have been acquitted of the charges.

(2.) THE prosecution case, briefly stated, is that accused -respondents and the complainant party are residents of village Rakh Muthi,Tehsil Akhnoor and were on inimical terms with each other; they were not on talking terms for the reasons that accused -respondents held the complainant party responsible for spreading a rumor in the village that accused Rattanlal alias Papu was maintaining illicit relations with the wife of his brother accused Kaku Ram. In order to take revenge accused Rattanlal, Kaku Ram, accompanied by their father accused Sunderdas, with the common intention of committing murder, went to the house of the complainant on 9.2.1993 at 8.30 PM . While the complainant and his family were preparing for taking their dinner, accused Rattanlal went inside the house of the complainant, Pamma Ram, while other two accused waited out side in the lane. Accused Rattanlal told PW Subhash Chander, son of the deceased Santosh Kumar and grand son of the complainant, that his brother, accused Kaku is calling him in the lane, on which PW Subhash Chander came in the lane followed by the complainant Pamma Ram,deceased Santosh Kumar and PW Romesh Chander, another brother of PW Subhash Chander. The moment Subhash Chander reached in the lane accused Kaku Ram saying, because he (PW Subhash Chander) was creating problems for his family, so he is to be killed, inflicted a drat blow which he was having in his hand on the head of PW Subhash Chander. The drat blow landed on his forehead,above the left eye and after sustaining injury he fell down. The deceased Santosh Kumar, when came forward to rescue his son, accused Sunder, exhorted accused Rattanlal, to kill the deceased, whereupon accused Rattanlal,who was having a khokhri in his hand, gave a blow with it on the head of the deceased Santosh Kumar. He too fell on the ground and blood started oozing out from his head. On this PW Romesh Chander, the other son of the deceased when came to save his father, accused Sunderdas gave a lathi blow which he was having with him to PW Romesh Kumar. After hearing the hue and cry, many people of the vicinity gathered there, whereupon accused fled from the spot. The complainant,Pamma Ram on the day of occurrence itself at 9.30 PM lodged an oral report in Police Post Jurian,which was recorded as DDR No.16, copy of which was sent to Police Station Akhnoor on the basis of which on 10.2.1993 at 8.35 FIR for commission of offences u/s 307/34 RPC and 4/27 I.A.A. was registered. Upon lodging of the report in the Police Post, police referred the injured persons for treatment to P.H.C. Jurian. In PHC Jurian injured Santosh Kumar (deceased),PW Subhash Chander and PW Romesh Kumar were examined by Dr.R.K.Gupta PW. He referred the injured to Sub -District Hospital Akhnoor after giving them immediate required treatment, where they were examined by Dr.S.K.Gupta, who further referred the injured Santosh Kumar and PW Subhash Chander to SMGS Hospital Jammu for treatment. After registration of FIR investigation was commenced, statements of the witnesses U/S 161 Cr.P.C. were recorded, bloodstained and plain earth was seized and sealed. On receiving the information about the deceased succumbing to his injuries at SMGS Hospital, ASI Ranjit Singh proceeded to the hospital where deadbody was seized and postmortem was got conducted thereon. Bloodstained clothes of the deceased were also seized and sealed and dead body was handed over to his heirs for performing last rites. Accused persons namely Sunderdas and Rattanlal were arrested on 11.2.1993 but accused Kaku Ram could not be arrested as he had gone back to his unit in the army where he was employed. During custody accused Sunderdas made a disclosure statement in regard to lathi which in pursuance thereof at his instance was recovered by the I.O. Accused Rattanlal too made a disclosure statement in respect of khokhri which was also recovered at his instance. Seized articles were sent for chemical examination to F.S.L. Jammu. During investigation opinion of the medical officer regarding the seized weapons was also obtained. Investigating agency after completing the investigation filed the charge sheet against the accused in the court of learned Judicial Magistrate Akhnoor. Before the learned Magistrate the investigating agency solicited orders for obtaining custody of accused Kaku Ram from the military authorities. However, accused Kaku Ram was produced by the army authorities before the Judicial Magistrate Akhnoor on 23.6.1993,whereupon he was taken into judicial custody. Learned Judicial Magistrate Akhnoor by his order dated 6.9.1993 committed the case for trial to the court of Session Jammu.

(3.) THE Trial Court charged accused Rattanlal U/S 302/307 RPC read with Sec.4/25 I.A.A. whereas Sunderdas and Kaku Ram accused were charged U/S 302/307 RPC. Accused were called upon to plead on which they took plea of not guilty and claimed trial. Prosecution in order to prove the charges against the accused examined Romesh Chander, Vijay Kumar, Subhash Chander, Dhano Devi, Khairatilal, Donda Ram, Jamil Ram, Dr.R.K.Gupta, Dr.S.K.Gupta, Dr.Anayatullah, Mohanlal, Kaku Ram, Shandu Ram, Kewal Krishan Constable, Anant Ram, Harbans Lal, Mushtaq Hussain Patwari, Qadeer Ahmed, Chetan Ji Matoo and Rajinder Singh. After recording the statements of the prosecution witnesses incriminating circumstances which had appeared in the evidence were put to the accused and their statements were recorded U/S 342 Cr.P.C. The accused persons put total denial to the occurrence and pleaded false implication. Accused did not enter defence.