SAMIR KUMAR MUKHERJEE Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PETITIONER has preferred this revision application against the judgment of acquittal dated 4. 8. 2003 passed by learned Sessions Judge, Deoghar in Sessions Case No. 75 of 2002, whereby opposite party No. 2 Rajendra Thakur was acquitted from the charges for offences under Sections 364a/34, 302/34 and 201/34,ipc.

(2.) CASE against the accused persons was registered on the basis of the F. I. R. lodged by the present petitioner at the police station in respect of kidnapping of his minor son Arpan Mukherjee alias Jay aged 11 years in the evening of 9-10-2001. As per the allegation in the F. I. R. , the minor boy had returned home from the school in the afternoon of 9-10-2001 and at about 4. 00 p. m. he left home telling his mother that he is going to visit his friend Sunil Das nearby and would return within 10 minutes, but he did not return. About 5. 30 p. m. his friend sunil Das came to the house of Arpan asking Arpan's mother regarding the whereabouts of Arpan, but the mother replied that her son had gone to his (Sunil's) house. A few moments later, Arpan's mother Sujata mukherjee (PW8) found an envelope containing a letter lying on the ground near the gate of her house. She gave the letter to her husband, who had by then returned home from work. On reading the letter, father of the boy namely Sameer Kumar Mukherjee (PW9)realized that it was a threatening letter containing demand for ransom money and that his son Arpan has been kidnapped by some criminals. A demand for a sum of Rs. 2. 00 lakhs was made in the letter and the same was ordered to be kept near the electric pole located near the house of one Madan Mohan prasad by 8. 00 p. m. The letter also warned not to inform the police. The father Sameer kumar Mukherjee along with his neighbouring residents namely Sanjay kumar Mandal (PW4) and Rajesh Periwal (PW) (sic) went in search of his son Arpan to the house of Sunil Das, but Sunil Das was not available in his house. His father had informed that Prakash Das and Amit Gupta (both friends of Sunil Das) had come to call sunil Das and both of them had gone together and have not returned home. Sameer kumar Mukherjee and others thereafter proceeded to the house of Prakash Das, but he was also not found at his house. While returning, they saw Prakash Das, Amit Gupta and Rajesh Periwal entering into the house of the co-accused Deo Krishna Prasad alias laloo (appellant) (sic ). When despite such, arpan was not traced out, his father accompanied by Santosh Kumar Maheshwari (PW6), Hiramani Jha (PW7) and Dilip Periwal (PW5) went to the residence of the Superintendent of Police, Deoghar and on being informed that the officer was out of Station, they came to the house of Dy. S. P. who directed them to go to the police station to lodge a complaint. Accordingly, a written report was lodged by Arpan's father Sameer kumar Mukherjee (PW9) at the police Station along with ransom letter received by him. Initially, no suspicion was raised against anybody. Sunil Das and Arpan were friends from the time when the two families lived in different portions of the rented house within the same mohalla and after Arpan's father had constructed his own house, his family shifted to the new house. On returning home, he found several persons waiting at his house including one Jago Devi (PW2)who informed that she had seen Sunil Das dropping a letter at the gate of his house. The informant and others again went in search of Arpan and in course of his search, they were informed by one Suresh Ram (PW 1) that he had seen Arpan and Sunil going together in the alley of Dr. Raman Kumar and that he had seen Prakash Das, Amit gupta. Rajendra Thakur and Deo Krishna prasad alias Laloo (appellant) (sic) waiting in the alley. When the informant proceeded to the house of Deo Krishna Prasad, he saw rajendra Thakur and Amit Gupta from some distance and thereafter, all of them including Prakash Das and Sunil Das had entered into the house of Deo Krishna Prasad. On this information, the informant proceeded to the house of Deo Krishna Prasad. However, no information regarding the whereabouts of Arpan could be obtained during the whole evening and even till the next day and, therefore, in compliance of the demand contained in the ransom note, a sum of Rs. 2. 00 lakhs kept in a bag was placed near the electric pole at about 8. 00 p. m. A watch was kept at a distance to see as to who comes to receive the bag, but when nobody arrived there, the informant along with the police returned. On the next morning i. e. on 11-10-2001 at about 6. 30-7. 00 am. Sunil Das and Deo Krishna Prasad were seen in the custody of the police proceeding along the alley of Dr. Raman Kumar. The informant and other witnesses followed them. They came to a dilapidated house located near the house of Deo Krishna Prasad. The gate of the house was locked which was broken open and on entering the house, the dead body of Arpan was found lying by the side of the wall and his slippers were also seen lying nearby and there were marks of injury on the neck of the dead body. After obtaining photographs of the dead body and after completing inquest, police forwarded the dead body for post-mortem examination.

(3.) ALTOGETHER 14 witnesses were examined at the trial by the prosecution including the informant (PW9), informant's wife (PW8), doctors who had conducted the post-mortem examination on the dead body of the deceased (PW 11, PW 12 and PW 14) and the investigating officer (PW 13 ). Besides oral evidences of the witnesses, prosecution had also adduced confessional statement of the co-accused persons namely Prakash Das and Deo Krishna Prasad recorded under section 164, Cr. P. C. and the Magistrate (PW 10) who had recorded their statements. The inquest report pertaining to the inquest of the dead body of the deceased, the postmortem report regarding the autopsy conducted on the dead body of the deceased and the seizure list pertaining to seizure of certain articles recovered from the alleged place of occurrence, were also adduced in evidence.