HORAM Vs. REX

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by seven persons, Horam, Chhote, Jithua, Mangala, Ram Chander, Jhabra and Moti, who have been convicted by the Sessions Judge of Moradabad under Sections 304/149, 325/149, 323/149 and 147, Indian Penal Code, and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment, the maximum sentence being seven years.

(2.) The prosecution case was that the accused Ramchander was a tenant of a certain plot in village Jagua in the District of Moradabad in the zemindari of Mohammad Mehdi Raza. There were ejectment proceedings against Ram Chander and it was alleged possession was delivered by the court amin to the zemindar's representative on 24/11/1945. At that time there were no crops in the field. In June 1946, so the prosecution story went on, the zemindar got a crop sown in the field but owing to excessive rain this crop did not come up satisfactorily. About ten days later, namely, on 37 June 1946, the zemindar decided to have the field reploughed and re- sown. He sent Teja along with Ram Das, Imam Raza, the zemindar's brother, and Sabir Husain, his karinda, to the field in question. They started ploughing the field when the accused in a body came up on the scene and asked why the field was being ploughed and without waiting for i the reply proceeded to beat Teja. Ram Das ran to the rescue of Teja and was also beaten. Then Imam Raza and Sabir Husain, who came to the , help of Teja and Ram Das, were also given a beating. As a result of the beating Sabir Husain died later in the day.

(3.) A report of this incident was made by Teja at 6-30 P.M. the same day. Of the accused, Horam also made a report earlier in the day at about 10-58 P.M. In this report it was stated that Horam and his brother Chhote went to see the field. (It may be mentioned that Chhote and Horam both are the eons of Ram Chander, the erstwhile tenant of the field.) Horam saw that Teja, Ram Das, Bishua, Kakwa and Sabir Husain were ploughing up the field which had already been sown by him. Horam and Chhote asked them why they were reploughing the field. Upon this the persons mentioned above said that they had been ordered by the zemindar to re- plough it. Horam prohibited them from doing so and thereupon those persons beat him and Chhote with lathis as the result of which both of them were injured.