JAY PRAKASH MAHTO Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard the parties.

(2.) This Criminal Miscellaneous Petition has been filed invoking the jurisdiction of this Court under Sec. 528 of the B.N.S.S., 2023 with a prayer to quash and set aside the order dtd. 30/1/2025 passed by learned Additional Sessions Judge-I, Ramgarh in connection with S.T. Case No.86 of 2020 arising out of Barlanga P.S. Case No.12 of 2020 involving the offences punishable under Ss. 147, 148, 149, 341, 342, 323, 324, 325, 307 and 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

(3.) The brief fact of the case is that PW-1 Pramod Kumar Mahto is an eye witness of the occurrence but he is also a witness of inquest of the dead body of the deceased and he is a signatory to the inquest report. In his examination as PW-1 in this case, Pramod Kumar Mahto has not stated anything to suggest that he was the witness to the inquest of the dead body of the deceased Deva Nand Mahto or he had signed the inquest report. The inquest report of the dead body of the deceased Deva Nand Mahto was marked as Exhibit-P-5/PW- 11 by PW-11, the IO of the case. The IO of the case as PW-11 in para-10 has categorically stated that the signature of the Pramod Kumar Mahto, whose parents name and address, as mentioned in the inquest report, tallies with that of the PW-1 as mentioned in his deposition. After the examination of the PW- 11, the Petitioners who are the accused persons of S.T. Case No.86 of 2020 of the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge-I, Ramgarh filed a petition under Sec. 311 of the Cr.P.C. to recall the PW-1 to cross-examine him only in respect of exhibit-P-5; that is the inquest report of the dead body of the deceased Deva Nand Mahto. The learned Additional Sessions Judge-I, Ramgarh observed that the defence has fully cross-examined the PW-1 at length and the accused persons of the case who are the petitioners herein have not disclosed on which point they want to recall the PW-1 and considering that the evidence of the prosecution was already closed, rejected the petition filed under Sec. 311 of the Cr.P.C. by observing that the petition has been filed by the petitioners to linger the case.