- (1.) LEAVE granted. This appeal is directed against the judgment of the Assam High Court dated 14/12/2006 whereby the conviction of the appellants recorded by the Sessions Judge under Ss. 302/34 Indian Penal Code, 1860 has been confirmed by the High Court.
(2.) AS per the prosecution story at about 11.30 p.m. on the night of 11/10/1999 four persons, the appellants herein, entered the house of Khalilur Rehman and committed his murder. The motive for the offence apparently was a land dispute between the deceased and the appellants. The incident was witnessed by Atabjan Nessa, PW 1 and Saida Khatun, PW 3, the wife and daughter of the deceased respectively. The alarm raised by them attracted several other persons including Md. Moinul Haque (PW 6), a relative and neighbour of the deceased and his father Dilawar (PW 2) and several other persons as well. On the information received by Md. Moinul Haque (PW 6) he rushed to the police station and lodged the report a short time later. Sadananda Hazarika (PW 8), the investigating officer and the Station House Officer of Police Station Abhayapuri reached the place of incident early next morning and made the necessary inquiries. As he suspected that he four appellants had been involved in the murder he made a search for them but without success. He also seized various items relevant to the investigation from the place of incident and sent the body for the post-mortem examination which was carried out on the next day and it is found that the death had been caused by the severance of the neck of the deceased. On completion of the investigation the appellants were charged for an offence punishable under Ss. 302/34 Indian Penal Code, 1860 and as they pleaded not guilty they were brought to trial.
(3.) THE trial court relying on the evidence of PWs 1 and 3, the wife and daughter of the deceased, as corroborated by the evidence of PWs 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 held that the case against the appellant-accused had been proved. The plea of the defence that the FIR and the inquest proceedings recorded on the next day did not contain the names of the assailants was explained away by observing that PW 1 had been rendered unconscious at the time of the murder and had not been in a position to give all details as to the incident. For arriving at this conclusion the trial court relied on the evidence of Moinul Haque (PW 6) who had deposed that PW 1 had been rendered unconscious and had remained in that position till the next morning. The court also found that the four assailants had arrived in the residential house of the deceased at the dead of night to settle scores over the land dispute and as such the common intention to commit murder had also been proved.;