BELAL SHEIKH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant has challenged the judgment of conviction and sentence dated 14.2.1996 and 27.2.1996 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, Pakur, in Sessions Case No. 238 of 1913/47 of 1973, whereby the appellant was convicted for the offence under Sections 302 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life.

(2.) THE case against the appellant and two Other co -accused was registered on the basis of the fard beyan of the informant Fatima Khatoon (PW4), wife of the deceased, Sheikh Abdul Bari, by the SI of Police, R.A. Singh of Pakur (M) P.S at 18 hours in the village on 29.7.1982 at the house of the informant. The fard beyan (Ext.2) of the informant (PW4) unfolds the prosecution case alleging inter alia that on 29.7.1082 at about 11 a.m. her husband was lying on the veranda of his house while her daughter (PW3) and the informant (PW4) were massaging oil on his body. At that time, the younger brother of the informant's husband, namely Bilal Sheikh (appellant) along with two other persons Sahmad Skeikh and Nowa Bawa arrived there and caught hold of the husband of the informant. The appellant suddenly gave three successive blows with a chisel on the informant's husband inflicting injuries on his left palm as well as on the right side of his chest. The victim succumbed to his injuries at the spot. On alarms of the informant (PW4) and her daughter (PW3), co -villagers namely Shamim Mohammad, Md. Yasin Moulvi, Abdul Majeed Sk, Sarpanch, Ajijul Haque and others arrived. The motive for assault is said to be a quarrel between the appellant and the deceased over a pond in which both of them had equal shares and the grievance of the appellant was the insistence of his brother (deceased) to sell away his share in the pond to some outsider despite resistance of the appellant. On completion of the investigation, charge sheet was submitted against the appellant alone recommending his trial for the offence of murder of the deceased while the two co -accused persons were not sent up for trial.

(3.) AT the trial, altogether seven witnesses were examined by the prosecution, including the informant (PW4) and her daughter (PW3) besides the doctor (PW2) who had conducted the post mortem on the dead body of the deceased. The investigating officer of the case was not examined. The fard beyan and the formal FIR besides the inquest report and seizure list were proved in evidence by the prosecution through formal witnesses namely PWs 1 and 7.