DEVKARAN Vs. THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is directed against the judgment dated 14.4.76 of the learned Sessions Judge Kota, where by the accused appellants Ramdayal, Ramratan, Ramnath and Kana were convicted under Sec. 323, 147, 304 Part II/149 IPC and each of them was sentenced to three months' R.I. under the first count, 6 months' R.I. under the second count and 5 years' R.I. under the third count. Accused -appellants Ramchandra, Devkaran. Ratiram and Ramkishan were convicted under Sec. 323, 147, 304 Part II/149 I.P.C. & each of them was sentenced to three months' R.I. under the first count and 6 months' R.I. under the second count 4 years' R.I. under the third count. However, two other accused Chhoga and Jagannath who were tried along with them were acquitted of all the charges framed against them. Tersely speaking the prosecution story as disclosed at the trial is that the accused -appellants and complainant as well as his associates are resident of village Badagaon and they have their fields in the same village They used to irrigate their fields by turn On 14 -10 -1975 as per turn Ram Nath Dhakar and Tulsi were to irrigate their field known as 'Keshan Lal wala field' after Ram Kishan had irrigated his field. On the fateful day in the morning Tulsi Ram and Ramnath Dhakar put or Oda in the water channel in order to divert the water into their field. Thereafter, accused namely, Jagannath, Ram Chandra and Ratiram reached there. Ram Chandra accused removed the Oda which led to verbal altercations between the parties. Ultimately, it was decided that a settlement may be arrived at by negotiation. Chhoga and Jagannath invited the members of the complainant party to their well for a talk in pursuance of which the members of the complainant party went to Bagechi of Chhoga. After sometime accused Ram Ratan, and Ram Dayal arrived on a tractor in the bagechi. They were armed with lathis and they started inflicting injuries on the person of Ramchandra (since deceased). Ramnath and Kana also followed suit and caused injuries on the head of Ram Chandra. The other accused inflicted injuries on the persons of Tulsi Ram, Ramkishan, Mohanlal and Nand Kishore. It has also been stated at the trial that Chhoga and Jagannath excoriated the appellants to finish Ram Chandra and others.

(2.) The First Information Report Ex. P/1 of this occurrence was lodged at the police station Nayapura on the same day at 10:45 a.m. The distance between the police station and the place of occurrence is 7 miles. Ram Chandra was admitted as indoor patient at Maharaja Haim Singh Hospital, Kota. PW 7 Dr. S.P. Nallens clinically examined Ram Chandra and noted four head injuries on his head. Ramchandra succumbed to his injuries in the hospital. He also performed the autopsy on the dead -body of Ramchandra and the post -mortem report is Ex. P/10. PW 1 Tulsi Ram, PW 3 Ramkrishan PW 4 Mohanlal and PW 2 Nand Kishore were also clinically examined and their injury reports are Ex P/7, Ex. P/5, Ex. P/6 and Ex. P/8 respectively. Out of the 10 accused three accused, namely, Ram Chandra, Ram Dayal and Ram Ratan were also clinically examined and their injury reports are Ex. D/2 Ex. D/4 and Ex. D/5. The Police after usual investigation submitted a challan against 10 accused in the court of Additional Munsif and Judicial Magistrate, No. 2 Kota, who committed them to stand their trial under Sec 302, 323 and 147 I.P.C. to the court of Sessions Judge. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges and the prosecution examined 18 witnesses. The accused in their statements recorded under Sec. 313 Cr. P.C. denied their complicity in the crime. The accused Ramchandra and Kana pleaded alibi and other accused raised the plea of self -defence. The statements of Moti Nand Kishore, Tulsi -ram and Mohan are that they were sitting in the Bagechi of Chhoga and were negotiating the compromise regarding the right to take water and to irrigate their fields Meanwhile the accused Ramdayal and Ramratan came there on their tractor to plough their field and the members of the prosecution party initiated the assault under the pretext that they trespassed into the field of Moti with tractor. They further pleaded that on the side of the complainant party Ramdayal, Ramkishan and others might have suffered injuries in the incident which ensued on the spot and they examined four witnesses in defence.

(3.) The learned Sessions Judge has held that the members of the complainant party as well as three accused suffered injuries during the course of the same occurrence. He also held that the evidence regarding exhortation by Chhoga and Jagannath was not reliable and they cannot be convicted as members of unlawful assembly simply an account of their presence at the scene of occurrence. As regards the remaining accused the learned Sessions Judge held that they formed unlawful assembly & were members of unlawful assembly out of whom Ramdayal, Ramratan, Ramnath and Kana inflicted injuries on the head of Ram Chandra in pursuance of their common object and other members of the complainant party were also injured in the course same occurrence at the hand of the accused -appellants in furtherance of the common object of the unlawful assembly. Placing reliance on the statements of injured eye -witnesses corroborated by the statement of PW 5 Moti, PW 6 Ramchandry & PW 8 Daulatram, the learned Sessions Judge held the accused -appellants guilty, convicted and sentenced them as mentioned above. He, however, held that the defence evidence was not reliable. The aggrieved accused appellants have challenged their conviction and sentence by this appeal.