ISAQ KHAN & ORS. Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All the three appeals are directed against the judgment passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Nagaur Camp at Deedwana in Sessions Case No. 3/83 on 7.3.1984. All the three appeals arise out of the same order and same sessions trial, therefore, they are disposed of together. The learned counsel were heard in all the three matters. The learned Public Prosecutor was heard on all the three matters and they also agreed that the appeals should be disposed of by a common order.

(2.) The prosecution story is as under :

(3.) On 2.8.82 in the night at about 2.00 a.m. the prosecutrix Geeta and Shanti were returning home from fair festival. When they were returning home, they were followed by the accused persons who caught hold of them so that their escorts run away and raped each of them alternatively. Information about rape was communicated to the father of the prosecutrix and the father-in-law of the prosecutrix who reached the place of occurrence, took the women and went home and thereafter on the next day, the first information report was lodged. As per the first information report, certain arrests of the accused persons were made and after investigation, sessions trial No. 3/83 was commenced charging all the four accused persons of committing rape on these two women. After the investigation was over, evidence was recorded of 15 prosecution witnesses and on appreciation of the entire evidence on record, the learned Judge came to the conclusion that 3 of the 5 accused persons were guilty of rape. He proceeded to convict them as per the impugned order and sentenced them to suffer imprisonment as aforesaid. The convicted accused persons have came up in three individual appeals as aforesaid which can conveniently be disposed of by one judgment.