STATE OF HP Vs. JAI DEV

JUDGEMENT

(1.) STATE has appealed against the judgment dated 1-7-1995 of learned Sessions Judge, Shimla, whereby respondents Jai Dev, Jatinder Kumar and Harneet, have been acquitted of the charge of murder, under Section 302 read with Section 34, IPC.

(2.) A report was lodged with the police on 23rd July, 1994, by PW-1 Puna Ram, an uncle of deceased Ganga Ram, that on 21-7-1994 Ganga Ram had gone to Nirmand from his village Jadani Pipal to buy merchandise but did not return and that his dead body had been found at 5 p.m. on 23-7-1994, the date of his lodging the report. The report was reduced into writing, in the form of statement, under Section 154 Cr. P. C., record of which is Ext. PW1/A, and case was formally registered on the basis of this report, vide FIR Ext. PW 14/A.

(3.) INVESTIGATION of the case revealed that deceased Ganga Ram, accompanied by PW-9 Padam Negi had gone to the house of PW-8 Shiv Lal on the night of 21st July, 1994, where deceased Ganga Ram, PW-8 Shiv Lal, PW-9 Padam Negi and PW-4 Tikkam Ram consumed two bottles of liquor. After consuming the liquor, all the four slept in the house of PW-8 Shiv Lal in village Bhagrighat. Around 12 or 12.30 in the night, Ganga Ram was heard shouting by PW-8 Shiv Lal and PW-9 Padam Negi that he was the son of a Thakur. When PW-8 Shiv Lal and PW-9 Padam Negi went out, they saw deceased Ganga Ram standing in the verandah of the house of PW-8 Shiv Lal and the three respondents just outside the verandah, quarrelling with the deceased. PW-8 Shiv Lal picked up a pickaxe (Gainti), which was lying in his verandah and tried to separate the handle from the pickaxe, with a view to chasing away the respondent. In that process, the pickaxe fell outside the verandah. It was picked up by one of the respondents, namely Jai Dev. Deceased Ganga Ram then ran away from the verandah. He was chased by all the three respondents. Respondent Jai Dev was carrying the pickaxe, without handle, with him, while chasing deceased Ganga Ram. After about 1/2 hour all the three respondents returned. This time they started shouting outside the house of one Sarmu Ram. They were challenging Sarmu Ram. PW-10 Charnu Ram, a brother of Sarmu, came out. PW-11 Jiwan Dass, a son of Sarmu, also came out. PW-11 Jiwan Dass picked up a Darat to scare away the respondents, who then ran away and while leaving they proclaimed that they were going to attend a marriage and that as and when they got a chance, they would sprinkle kerosene on their houses and set them on fire.