PANCHOLA Vs. THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All these 3 appeals arise out of the judgment of the learned Addl. Sessions Judge, Dholpur, dated July 25, 1975 whereby all the 3 accused-appellants were convicted for charges under section 307, 307/34 I. P. C. and 3/27 Arms Act, 1959. They were however acquitted of the charge under section 344 I. P. C. because the person who was said to have been abducted by the alleged dacoits, turned hostile to the prosecution.

(2.) An informant brought a news to P.W.5 Sowaran Singh, S. H. O. Rajakhera that the gang of Bengali dacoit was seen with one boy abducted by this gang in the jungle near of Pureni. P.W.5 Sowaran Singh therefore went in search of the gang. The police force came to know that the gang had gone to the village Singholi. Therefore P. W. 5 Sowaran Singh with all the force went to the village Singholi and encircled it. A wireless message was also sent to the Superintendent of Police to send the R.A.C. force for their help. It is alleged that the dacoits having come to knew that they were encircled by the police force, opened fire at them. When police was not disturbed by the fires opened by the dacoits and the police also retaliated by opening fire from their side, it is said that the 3 dacoits along with the boy kidnapped, took shelter in the house of one' Bedaria Chamar in that village. The house was surrounded by the police force and the circle was narrowed down gradually. It is alleged that the dacoits again opened fire at the police party from inside the house but when challenge was thrown that they should either surrender or should meet the consequences, it is said that the dacoits surrendered before the police. P. W. 5 Sowaran Singh asked the dacoits to come with their arms one by one raising their hands upwards and it is said that first of all Panchoia came out of the house with a 12 bore gun in his hand followed by Ramsingh having a stain gun in his hands and then Bengali Teli came last of all with a 303 gun in his hands. All these arms were taken possession of by the police party. The police also collected from the spot 15 empty cartridges alleged to have been fired from the stain gun, 303 gun. Live cartridges were also seized from the possession of the accused persons. All of them were challenged for an offence under sections 307, 307/34, 344 I. P. C. and 3/27 of the Arms Act, 1959. It is really strange that the investigation was not properly conducted and the guns and empty cartridges were not sent for the examination of the Ballastic expert. However it is not denied that the 5 empty cartridges recovered from the spot were of stain-gun cartridges and other 10 fired from 303 gun. There was no cartridge which could be connected with the gun recovered from the possession of Panchoia.

(3.) The prosecution examined 5 eye-witnesses. P. W. 4 Omprakash was a boy who was kidnapped by the gang of dacoits and he also came out along with the police from the house of Bedaria Chamar. But at the trial he did not choose to oblige the prosecution by telling the true state of affairs and turned hostile. Therefore there remained only 4 witnesses, namely, P. W. 1 Anoop Singh, L. C., P. W. 2 Mohan Singh H. C., P. W. 3 Pratap Ram, Company Commander, and P. W. 5 Sowaran Singh S. H. O.