- (1.) By this common judgment and order we propose to dispose of all the four appeals which are interconnected as the issues and the facts arising for our consideration are similar. They were heard together and, therefore, a common judgment and order is also passed.
(2.) These appeals are filed by the appellants being aggrieved by the judgment and order dated 10.12.2003 passed by the Gauhati High Court whereby the Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the writ appeals of the appellants and thereby confirmed the judgment and order dated 16.8.02 passed by the learned single Judge dismissing all the writ petitions filed by the appellants holding that the appellants were given all reasonable opportunity to defend themselves and, therefore, there was no merit in those writ petitions.
(3.) The brief facts leading to the filing of the present appeals are that on 13th March, 1999 the appellants and few others of the Central Reserve Police Force [for short "CRPF"] while serving under 60 Battalion stationed at Haflong were detailed to go in two vehicles, one as escort and other a water tanker for bringing water from Retezole Jatinga water point. Sanjay Kumar Singh, the driver, Jai Shankar Sharma and K.N. Paswan were in the water tanker and they were provided with an escort vehicle which was driven by Jawahar Lal and the other occupants in the said escort vehicle were Head Constable Emmanuel Herenz; L. Nk. Harendra Chowdhury; L. Nk. Jaswant Singh; Constable U.K.S. Gurung and Constable P.S. Madhvi. While the water tanker with the escort party following was on its way to the said water point, the militants ambushed the vehicles and started firing indiscriminately as a result of which five CRPF personnel in the escort vehicle were killed, namely, Driver Jawahar Lal; L. Nk. Harendra Chowdhury; L. Nk. Jaswant Singh; Constable U.K.S. Gurung and Constable P.S. Madhvi. The appellants were the four who survived the ambush.;