GURMEET SINGH Vs. GURDEV SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PRAYER has been made for the grant of regular bail to the petitioner during the pendency of the trial of the case arising out of criminal complaint No. 361/11 dated 11.2.2011 titled 'Gurdev Singh Vs. Jaswant Singh and others', under Sections 302/201/148 and 149 IPC.

(2.) INITIALLY , FIR No. 151 dated 27.9.2010 under Sections 302/201/34 IPC was registered at the instance of complainant Gurdev Singh against the petitioner and four others, namely, Jaswant Singh, Basant Singh, Gurmail Singh and Gurjit Singh @ Nikku. During the investigation of the case, the petitioner and his brothers Jaswant Singh and Basant Singh were found innocent. On 24.12.2010, challan was presented only against Gurmail Singh and Gurjit Singh @ Nikku. Before the case could be committed qua Gurmail Singh and Gurjit Singh @ Nikku, the complainant filed the aforementioned criminal complaint on 11.2.2011. After recording of the preliminary evidence, learned Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Ellenabad passed order dated 19.9.2011 summoning the petitioner and his two brothers Jaswant Singh and Basant Singh to face the charges of murder and destruction of evidence. It may be mentioned here that before the summoning order could be passed, learned Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Ellenabad had, on 15.3.2011, committed the FIR case to the Court of Sessions. After being summoned in the aforementioned criminal complaint as accused, the petitioner and his brothers Jaswant Singh and Basant Singh could not be arrested. Proceedings were initiated to get them declared as proclaimed offenders. However, before any such order could be passed, the petitioner was arrested on 1.12.2011. On 24.1.2012, the petitioner was produced before the Court of Sessions when the State case as well as the complaint case were clubbed and on that very day, the charges were also framed. The Court has been informed by the State counsel that out of the long list of twenty three witnesses, the prosecution has already examined eight of its witnesses. However, as per the counsel for the complainant, eleven witnesses have been examined so far.

(3.) IN the complaint filed by complainant-Gurdev Singh, it was alleged that on 23.9.2010 at about 12.00 noon, accused Gurmail Singh and Gurjit Singh had called him and his nephew Ganga Singh and, thereafter, Gurmail Singh and Gurjit Singh alongwith Ganga Singh left on a motor cycle. When the complainant came out of his house, he saw that at a little distance, Jaswant Singh and Gurmeet Singh, petitioner also started following the aforementioned three persons. The four accused took Ganga Singh and proceeded towards Ghaggar river. Accused Basant Singh, another brother of the petitioner, was also with them. When Ganga Singh did not return home even after 2/3 hours, the complainant tried to search for him. At about 4/4.30 p.m., when Gurmit Singh son of Jodh Singh and Ratan Singh son of Kartar Singh, were going towards Talwara Ther and reached near Amritsar Kalan Ghat, they saw that the petitioner and his brother Jaswant Singh were holding Ganga Singh from his hands and legs whereas Basant Singh, Gurjit Singh @ Nikku and Gurmail Singh were inflicting injuries to Ganga Singh. Thereafter, in connivance with each other, all the five accused in order to kill Ganga Singh and with an intention to dispose of his body threw him in the deep waters of Ghaggar.