MODU Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) OUT of 13 person who stood their trial in the court of Additional Sessions Judge Baran for having formed an unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapons and in the prosecution of common object for murdering Madan, the five appellants have been convicted under section 302 read with 149 and 118, Indian P.C. For the first count each one of them his been sentenced to life imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 100/ -, in default thereof to further undergo six months rigorous imprisonment. On the second count the sentence passed is that of two years rigorous imprisonment on each. The convicts have filed this appeal to challenge their convictions and sentence. The prosecution story is that Modu accused had mortgaged his 22 Bighas of land situated in village Boredi to Panna Lal (P.W. 16). Panna Lal was to arrange for cultivation and to deduct Rs. 500/ - per year towards the loan that he had advanced to Modu. In the relevant year i.e. 1968 -69 Panna Lal gave this land to Madan deceased for cultivation Modu did not like this. He asked Madan not to take the land and cultivate. Madan insisted to keep the land and cultivated Jowar on a portion of the same and prepared the rest for the next crop. A little before sunset on 30th of August, 1968, Modu along with 12 other namely; Surajmal s/o. Kana, Chhitar s/o. Bherural, Prabbu s/o. Shanker, Kedar s/o. Kana, Bishna s/o. Mathura, Ramdayal s/o. Mathura, Ram -nath s/o. Pannalal, Jagannath s/o. Baijnath, Kishanlal s/o. Bhanwarlal, Jamna s/o. Motilal, Anandi s/o. Madho, and Ramnarain s/o. Hira armed with weapons forming themselves into an unlawful assembly went to the house of Madan. Out of 13 persons Jagnnath was armed with a gun, Chhitar and Ramdayal were armed with swords and others were armed with lathies; kuntiyas or parniyas. Madan was at that time sitting in the Aangan and about to take his meals. They threatened to kill Madan. Madan seeing them ran away from the house towards the 'Talab', as pointed out in the plan Ex. P/21 Surajmal (P.W. 6) his brother, who was living in the adjoining house and who was at that time in the maize field nearby seeing the assembly of 13 persons armed with weapons and apprehending danger to himself as well, ran away from the house. He also adopted the same course. Both then took the path way leading to the village Sundlak Malkheri. Both of them went on running and the accused behind them chasing. When Soorajmal reached the Mandeda 'Khet' he saw four persons Bheru Lal, Gyarsi Lal, Birdhi Lal and Samander Singh of village Tarda going towards their village. He joined them but Madan was overtaken, by the accused persons. Kedar accused held Madan by his hands and dragged him towards the field of Rama which adjoined the Mandeda field. All the accused persons surrounded Madan and Soorjmal accused inflicted a blow by his 'Kuntiya' on the neck of Madan on account of which Madan fell down on the ground. All the other accused persons namely Modu, Chhitar, Prabhu, Kedar, Bishna, Ramdayal, Ramnnath, Jamna Lal Anardilal, Ramnarain and Kishna s/o. Bhanwarlal belaboured Madan and inflicted numerous injuries on his person by their weapons. Jagannath s/o. Baijnath accused, who had a gun, remained nearby on guard and prevented others namely the four aforesaid persons of Tarda village and Soorjmal P.W. 6 from coming to the rescue of Madan Inspite of entreaties from these persons the accused caused serious injuries to Madan as a result of which be is said to have died at the spot. Thereafter some of the accused persons placed Madan on their lathies and Kuntias and took away his body from the field of Rama towards their village Boredia. Soorajmal (P.W. 6) on account of fear did not go to his village and accompanied the persons of village Tarda, where he stayed for the night with Gopal his maternal uncle (P.W. 3). In the morning of 31 -8 -68 Soorajmal went to village Boredia while passing by the house of Modu accused, he saw the dead body of Madan lying in the house of Modu. After having informed his mother Mst. Mathuri (P.W. 1) about the death of Madan went to the police station Baran where he reached at about 9 a.m. He lodged an oral report. Shri Devendra Singh (P.W. 15) Station House Officer, after having heard the details of incident from Sooraj Mal without recording the report, leaving Sooraj Mal at the police station went to the house of Modu. According to Soorajmal he brought the dead body in the after noon and sent it for post mortem examination. It was at about 8 p.m. he was allowed to go from the police station to do the cremation of his brother, and it was after that, that he recorded the first information report which is marked Ex. P/5 This has been the grievance of Soorajmal vide Ex. D/7 that the station House Officer was in collusion with some of the accused inasmuch as he did not mention the names of all the 13 accused and instead he recorded the names of 10 persons and out of them, the names of two innocent persons Jagannath s/o. Shanker and Mathuralal son of Onkar were wrongly included. He pointed out that the names of (1) Jagannath son of Baijnath, (2) Jamnatal, (3) Anandilal, (4) Ramnath, and (5) Kishan s/o. Baanwarlal were not mentioned. We will discuss this matter at the appropriate stage.

(2.) DR . M.S. Juha (P.W. 13) Medical Officer at Baran conducted the postmortem examination of the deceased Madan at 5 p.m. on 31 -8 -68. He found the following external injuries:

(3.) BASE of the skull fracture in the left interior middle and posterical fossa.