SAHJAD ANSARI Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By the judgment dated 12-2-2002 passed in Sessions Trial No. 526 of 1993, the Special Judge, Hazari-bagh, had convicted the appellant for offences under Sections 366, 376, 302/34 IPC and Section 3(2)(V) of the Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. While sentence of rigorous imprisonment for life was awarded for the offence under Section 302/34 IPC read with Section 3(2)(V) SC/ST Act, sentence of ten years for each of the offences under Sections 366 IPC and 376 IPC was awarded besides sentence of seven years rigorous Imprisonment under Section 201 IPC. Two other co-accused who were also put on trial, were however acquitted of the charges. The gist of the charge being that on 5-11-1992, the appellant along with two other co-accused persons namely Md. Nijamuddin Ansari and Ramnath Singh had abducted the prosecutrix and committed gang rape on her and thereafter, caused fatal injuries to her resulting in her death.

(2.) The facts of the case, in brief, is that on 5-11-1992, the prosecutrix was travelling by a bus from Ranchi to her sister's house at Giddi. The bus had stopped at a railway level crossing of Patratu since the gate was closed. It was at about 5.30 p.m. There were few passengers in the bus all of whom, except the prosecutrix, got down from the bus for having refreshments at a nearby the tea-stall. At that time, the appellant, whom the prosecutrix knew from before as a bus conductor, reached there on a motor cycle along with two of his associates. They got into the bus and forcibly made the prosecutrix to get down from the bus by criminally intimidating her on the point of a knife. They forcibly took her on the motor cycle along a kutcha road towards a place known as Sayal, They left the motor cycle at some distance from the village and took her oh foot to the house of accused Ramnath Singh. At the house, she saw three children, one aged person and one lady. After sending the inmates of the house away, the miscreants felled her down on the ground and committed gang rape on her. Thereafter, they took her forcibly to a coal mine at a distance of about one kilometer away from the house and on the way they threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to any one and when she did not reply, one of them took out his belt and began lashing her with the belt. Later, the appellant Shahjad Ansari tied the neck of the prosecutrix with the belt and dragged her towards the coal mine and dumped her on the burning coal. Believing that she had died, the miscreants left the place. The prosecutrix suffered extensive burn injuries. Her clothes were totally burnt. Yet she was alive and by mustering courage, she walked towards a village located at a distance of about half a kilometer from the coal mines. She knocked at the door; the occupant of the house saw her and provided clothes to cover her body and took her to the nearest police station at Bhurkunda from where she was taken to hospital at Sayal and later she was shifted to Rajendra Medial College Hospital (RMCH) Ranchi. The prosecutrix had explained that she used to travel frequently by the bus from Ranchi to Giddi to meet her sister and she new Sahjad Ansari, the appellant as Bus Conductor. The statement of the prosecutrix was recorded as her fardbeyan by the police officer of the Bariatu P. S. at the RMCH in the presence of the doctor and victim's sister Stifen Minz and on the basis of the same the instant case was registered. It may be mentioned that the signature of the prosecutrix was not obtained on her fardbeyan since both her hands and fingers were extensively burnt. Names of other two co-accused persons were ascertained by the investigating officer in course of investigation and all the three co-accused persons were charge sheeted and put on trial. The prosecutrix in course of her treatment at the RMCH, died after about 35 days of the occurrence.

(3.) As many as twelve witnesses were examined by the prosecution, including the doctor who had conducted post mortem examination on the dead body of the deceased, and the investigating officer of the case, besides other witnesses.