- (1.) The four appellants along with eight others were tried by the Designated Court, Ahmedabad for offences punishable under Secs. 120B and 307 I.P.C., Secs. 3 and 5 of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987 ('TADA' for short) and Secs. 4 and 6 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908. The allegations against them were that they hatched a criminal conspiracy to let loose a reign of terror in the city of Ahmedabad by hurling bombs on the people of the Hindu community and that pursuant to the said conspiracy they hurled bombs near Sarangpur bus-stand on 29-1-1993 as a result of which some members of the public sustained injuries. The trial ended in an order of conviction and sentence recorded against all the appellants under Secs. 120-B I.P.C. and Secs. 3 and 5 of TADA, two of the appellants under Secs. 307 I.P.C and 4 of the Explosive Substances Act and the other two appellants under Sec. 6 of the Explosive Substances Act and of acquittal of the other eight. Aggrieved by their convictions and sentences the appellants have filed this appeal under Sec. 19 of TADA.
(2.) To sustain the charges levelled against the appellants, the prosecution rested its case primarily upon the confessional statements made by each of the above four appellants before Shri D. B. Patel (PW 6), Superintendent of Police, C.I.D. Crime Branch, Ahmedabad which were purportedly under Sec. 15 of TADA. The Designated Court found the confessions voluntary and true and, as they corroborated each other, passed the impugned judgment against the appellants.
(3.) Under sub-sec. (1) of Sec. 15 of TADA a confession made by a person before a police officer not lower in rank than a Superintendent of Police is admissible notwithstanding the provisions contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure or Evidence Act, 1872. Sub-sec. (2) thereof, read with Rule 15 of the Rules framed under TADA, lays down the procedure to be followed for recording such confession. Sub-rule (3)(b) of Rule 15 enjoins the police officer, who records the confessions, to make a memorandum at the end of the confession to the following effect : "I have explained to (Name) that he is not bound to make a confession and that, if he does so, any confession he may make may be used as evidence against him and I believe that this confession was voluntarily made. It was taken in my presence and hearing and recorded by me and was read over to the person making it and admitted by him to be correct, and it contains a full and true account of the statement made by him.";