Gajendragadkar, C. J. - (1.) Forty persons were charged with having committed several offences the principal one of which was under section 302 read with S. 149 of the Indian Penal Code. The case against these persons was tried by the first Additional Sessions Judge at Jhansi. The other charges framed against them were under S.307/149, 201/149 and 511, 395, 396, 149 and 449, I.P.C. The learned trial Judge held that none of the charges had been proved against five of the accused persons. He also found that the charges under Sections 395 and 396 were not proved against any of them. In regard to the remaining charges, he found that 35 out of 40 accused persons were guilty. For the major offence charged under S.302/149, he sentenced 10 accused persons to death and 25 others to imprisonment for life. He also directed that the said accused persons should undergo different terms of imprisonment for the remaining offences; but for the purpose of the present appeals, it is unnecessary to refer them.
(2.) After the learned trial Judge pronounced his judgment on the 31st December, 1962, the 35 accused persons who had been convicted by him preferred three appeals between them before the Allahabad High Court, whereas the sentences of death imposed on 10 accused persons by the learned trial Judge were submitted to the said High Court for confirmation. The High Court has held that 7 out of the 35 appellants before it were not proved to have committed any of the offences, and so, they were ordered to be acquitted. In regard to the remaining 28 appellants, the High Court has confirmed the orders of conviction and sentence imposed on them by the trial Court. In the result, the reference made to the High Court for confirmation of the sentences of death imposed on the 10 accused persons by the trial Court was allowed. It is against this decision of the High Court that the present five appeals have been brought to this Court by special leave, and the number of accused persons who have brought these appeals before us is 16.
(3.) Before dealing with the points raised in these appeals, it is necessary to set out very briefly the relevant facts on which the prosecution case against the appellants and their co-accused substantially rests. The incident which has given rise to the present criminal proceedings took place on the 29th November, 1961 in village Bilati Khet in the district of Jhansi at about 8 a.m. It is clear that this village is cursed with keen rivalry and enmity between two factions. One group was led by Gayadin who and four other members of his family were murdered on the said date. All these murders were committed according to the prosecution, by the members of the rival faction amongst whom are included the present appellants before us. Criminal proceedings have continued between the parties for several years almost without interruption. The rival group was led by Laxmi Prasad alias Laxmi Narain who is one of the appellants in this Court. In the last election of the village Panchayat Laxmi Prasad succeeded as Pradhan of the village and defeated the candidate set up by Gayadin. On the 28th November, 1961, a boundary dispute led to an incident between the members of the two groups. This dispute related to two fields one of which belonged to Gayadin and the other to Laxmi Prasad. Attempts were made to settle this dispute by arbitration, but they failed. It appears that Laxmi Prasad and the members of his group did not agree to submit to any arbitration and they left the meeting called for the purpose threatening that they would see that the matter in dispute between them was settled the next day. It is on this grim note that the incident of the 28th November ended.;