JANAK SINGH Vs. EMPEROR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by 13 accused who have been convicted by the learned Additional Sessions Judge of Patna by his order dated 30 July 1941 in a trial held with the aid of a jury and have been sentenced to various terms, of imprisonment under Secs.147, 148, 324/149 and 326/149. The occurrence for which the accused have been found guilty took place as far back as 12 November 1939. The circumstances under which these accused had been tried once before another learned Judge with the aid of another jury are set out clearly in the order of this Court in Janak Singh V/s. Emperor reported inA.I.R. 1942 Pat. 444 dated 15th August 1940 by which the verdict of the jury was set aside and the accused were directed to be retried.

(2.) The rioting which is the subject of the charge in the present case arose out of a dispute with respect to plot bearing No. 1666 in village Sahri within the khand known as Bhangi Bigha Khanda. This plot has an area of about 22 khatas towards the north and contains another sub-plot with an area of 17 kathas towards the south, that is to say, about 39 kathas or 2 bighas more or less. On the date of occurrence which was on the morning of 12 November 1939 the deceased Ghaman Beldar was harvesting the crops with the aid of his men and women labourers which were on the northern plot of 22 kathas. At that time it is alleged that the accused who represented the interest of the landlord arrived there armed with various weapons and they are first said to have sat on the alang of the field while a constable and a dafadar who had accompanied them went on to persuade the party of the complainant to desist from cutting the orops on the 22 kathas field. The constable was successful in the persuasion and Chaman, and his men stopped from further harvesting the crops. The witnesses, however, do not agree whether the women labourers who were also along with Chaman did stop their work of harvesting or not. After the men had stopped harvesting at the request or persuasion of the constable, the case of the prosecution is that the party pf the accused assaulted them while they were either on or near about the place from where the crops had been cut already or while they were fleeing from the field on seeing the attitude of the mob. As a result of the injuries which were inflicted on Chaman, he died.

(3.) Four of the prosecution witnesses, namely, Behari Beldar, Dular Beldar, Siri Beldar and Bamphal Beldar received simple injuries in the riot. Accordingly the accused were charged for the offence of killing, Chaman Beldar under Section 302 read with Section 34, Indian Penal Code, and Janak Singh was charged for the offence of killing Chaman under Section 302, Indian Penal Code, while some of the other accused were charged for the same offence by the operation of Section 34, Indian Penal Code. Eight of the accused were charged for being members of an unlawful assembly the common object of which was to cause hurt to Chaman Lal and his men. Some other accused were charged under Section 148, Indian Penal Code, for the same common object. All the accused were charged under Section 302 read with Section 149, Indian Penal Code, for being members of an unlawful assembly with the same common object and while being members of that unlawful assembly one or more of the members of that assembly killed Chaman Lai, an offence punishable under Section 302, Indian Penal Code, the offence being committed in prosecution of the common object of that assembly or i such as the members of that unlawful assembly knew to be likely to be committed in prosecution of that common object. Specific charges were framed against a number of accused under Secs.323, 324, 326, Indian Penal Code.