- (1.) Two brothers Hate Singh and Bheru Singh were convicted of the murder of one Shiv Singh and sentenced to death. The Madhya Bharat High Court confirmed the convictions and upheld the sentences. Both appealed to this Court. Bheru Singh's appeal was dismissed 'in limine' because he admitted the shooting from the start and took all the blame on himself. He adhered to these admissions throughout the trial and also in the appeal to the High Court. There is also the testimony of two eye-witnesses against him which in view of his admissions cannot but be believed so far as he is concerned. But there appeared to be an element of doubt in the other case, so Hate Singh's appeal was admitted for hearing and that is the appeal we are now dealing with Hate Singh has denied complicity in the crime all through
(2.) Put very shortly the prosecution case is that there was a sudden quarrel between the deceased Shiv Singh and the accused Bheru Singh because Shiv Singh hit Hate Singh's young brother-in-law aged 12. There was some abuse and Bheru Singh fired at Shiv Singh with a gun and hit him. Shiv Singh, though wounded, rushed at Bheru Singh with a lathi. The appellant Hate Singh, who also had a gun, thereupon intervened and fired at Shiv Singh and hit him. The result was that Shiv Singh dropped death.
(3.) The medical evidence discloses that Shiv Singh had three gunshot wounds in his body, all in front: two on the chest and one in the stomach. All three wounds were on the left side of the front of the body. One of the shots penetrated the heart : the second was 2 1/2 inches from the left nipple and tore the spleen; the third was on the left side of the umbilicus. Dr. Shukla P. W. 16 tells us that any one of the three injuries would have proved fatal in itself. He also fells us that all three wounds could be caused by a single discharge from a gun.;