NAZIR Vs. EMPEROR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Seven persens, Nazir, Jumma, Shera, Idu, Sukhan, Harbans and Pheru, have been convicted by the Sessions Judge of Muzaffarnagar of an offence under Section 396, I.P.C, and have been sentenced each to 8 years R.I. The prisoners have submitted appeals from jail against their conviction, and an application has been made in revision on behalf of the Local Government requesting this Court to enhance the sentences passed upon these persons.

(2.) A dacoity of a ferocious nature took place on the night of 19th/20 October, 1930, at the house of Prabhu Lal Vaish in the village of Kaserwa.the dacoits, who are said to have numbered more than 30, were armed with guns, lathis and probably spears. Two men who interfered with them were shot dead, and another was beaten to death with lathis. The women were grossly ill-used, one or more were violated, and one was tortured. In my opinion a sentence of 8 years R.I. in such a case is inadequate. No sentence less than transportation for life should be imposed upon any, of those persons who take part in a dacoity of this nature. It does not appear that the learned Sessions Judge had any doubt that the persons whom he convicted were guilty, and he has praised the police officers who conducted the investigation for their good work. We regret that we have been unable to agree with the learned Judge either in his commendation of the police investigation or in the view taken by him as to the guilt of the majority of those persons whom he has convicted.

(3.) The case was reported by Faqira chaukidar at 8 a. m. on 20 October. The 1 portion of the report is a straightforward description of the affair. At the end a suggestion is made that the dacoity was the work of the congress party organised by the congress captain Lal Singh jar. This part of the report does not appear to be the work of the chaukidar, and we are not surprised to find that the chaukidar denied emphatically that he had made this addition.