EKRAM KHAN Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Both the aforesaid criminal appeals arising out of the same impugned judgment were heard together and hence are being disposed of by this common judgment. These three appellants were put on trial along with Nazma Khatoon on the charge of kidnapping a minor boy for ransom. Learned trial court while acquitting Nazma Khatoon, did find the appellants guilty for the offence under Sections 363 and 364A read with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code and hence sentenced appellants Md. Ekram Khan and Suraj Vikas Minz to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life under Section 364A of the Indian Penal Code and further to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years under Section 363 of the Indian Penal Code. However no separate sentence was passed under Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code. At the same time, appellant- Ashique Khan was sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life under Section 120B read with Section 364A of tile Indian Penal Code and further to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five yeans under Section 363 read with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code.

(2.) The case of the prosecution is that as usual, the driver, Suraj Vikas Minz (appellant), on 23.12.1998 at about 7:00 a.m. took Kumar Vivek, P,W. 12, and Kumar Vaibhav, P.W. II, both minor sons of the informant, Jagdish Prasad, P.W. 10, to D.A.V. Syamli School on a car bearing No. BR-14F-4942. At about 8:45 a.m., Kumar Vivek came home weeping and disclosed to his family members including the informant that when three unknown persons near A.G. More signaled the driver to stop the car, he stopped the car and then all the three persons boarded on the car and took out the revolver and by pointing towards him threatened not to raise arty alarm. Thereafter, the driver, instead of taking the car towards the school, started taking at the instance of the accused persons, towards Ratu Road. After reaching ahead of Ratu market he was given a letter with instruction to give it to his father wherein his father was asked to pay a sum of Rs. 20 lakhs by evening, failing which his son, Kumar Vaibhav, would be done to death and then he was asked to get down. While Kumar Vivek was narrating about the occurrence, driver, Suraj Vikas Minz, came over there and he also handed over a same kind of letter to the informant. Thereupon, when driver, Suraj Vikas Minz, was interrogated intensively, he confessed his guilt in writing (Ext. 2) by disclosing that the previous day; he had been to the house of Md. Ekram Khan at Village Kairo. where Ashique Khan, Jasir and Mojib were present and there a plan was hatched to kidnap Kumar Vaibhav and, accordingly, that was executed, whereby Kumar Vaibhav after being kidnapped, has been kept with appellant- Ashique Khan. He also disclosed that Md. Ekram Khan, Jasir and Mojib had boarded on a car. Thereupon the informant, P.W.10, submitted a written report before the Officer In-charge of Doranda Police Station along with written confession (Ext, 2) of appellant- Suraj Vikas Minz and also two ransom letters (Ext. 3/1 and 3/2).

(3.) Upon receiving written complaint, a case was registered against the appellants and other accused persons and a formal FIR (Ext. 4) was drawn. P.W. 13, Bhagwan Prasad, the Investigating Officer, upon taking up the case for investigation, interrogated the driver- Suraj Vikas Minz, who in that course, confessed his guilt before the Investigating Officer and also disclosed about the place, where the victim has been kept confined. On his disclosure, when a raid was led in the house of appellant Ashique Khan, the victim was not found there, but it could be known that the accused persons, after sensing possibilities of raid being laid, have taken the victim boy towards Taranga forest and hence the raiding party when came to the forest, it found victim-Kumar Vaibhav weeping near a tree, who disclosed that he had been brought there in the evening, but the accused persons, on getting information about arrival of the police, have fled away from there. Thereafter, the police, at the instance of the victim boy, raided a house, belonging to the appellant- Ashique Khan, from where a Tiffin Box and a Bottle were recovered over which the name of the victim- Kumar Vaibhav was there which was seized under Seizure List (Ext. 7) in presence of Rajesh Munda, P.W. 5, and Habib Khan. P.W. 7, who have turned hostile,