NANHAK AHIR Vs. EMPEROR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These two appeals are preferred from the same judgment of the Additional Sessions Judge of Patna, who, accepting the verdict of the jury, passed sentence of ten years rigorous imprisonment on twelve of the appellants under Section 395 of the Indian Penal Code, the same sentence on Paran Dom of Rampur under Section 395 read with Section 109, and transportation for life on Ramsawarath Singh, Chuli Dom and Batoran Dom under Section 395, read with Section 75 of the Indian Penal Code. Of the thirteen appellants in the first appeal, the first two, Nanhak and Mukha, residents of Naghar, are represented by Mr. K.B. Dutt and the others by Mr. Biswas who has also placed the case of the three appellants in the second appeal which has been preferred from jail.

(2.) Of the latter Hardwar Singh has also been convicted under Section 412 but a separate sentence has not been passed on him for that offence. The trial having been by jury, the appeal is limited to questions of law and the appellate Court is also limited by the provisions of Section 423 (2) and 537 of the Criminal P. C.. Broadly the only points which arise in the appeal are whether the verdict is erroneous owing to a misdirection by the Judge in respect of the evidence of an approver examined as a prosecution witness and if so whether the misdirection has in fact occasioned a failure of justice in which case only the conviction can be reversed or altered.

(3.) The appellants other than Paran Dom belong to five villages, Naghar, Barah, Patut, Mahendarngar, Nayyatola and Babhanlai, lying six to eight miles west of Rampur, and are at pains to bring out that they are badmashes, suspects or surveillees. The prosecution case, so far as material, was briefly as follows: On the night of 21 March last a dacoity took place in the cloth-shop of Ram Narain Sahu in village Rampur, five miles south of the Naubatpur police station, in the course of which a brother of Ramnarain, Wali Mian, Muhammad Alli and other villagers who helped were injured and Mauji his servant threw tiles at the intruders from the roof. The village chaukidar (who with his son was subsequently arrested as being implicated) gave information at the police station at 6-15 a.m., stating that the dacoits were not recognized.