- (1.) M. C. Jain, J. Sessions Trial Nos. 358 of 1978 and 33 of 1979 were tried together by the II Additional Sessions Judge, Etawah. In all, seven persons including the present three appellants were put to trial under Sections 396 and 412 I. P. C. One of them, namely, Sri Krishan died during the pendency of the trial and the same against him abated. The other three Vijay Bahadur, Mohan Lal and Lala Ram were acquitted against whom the case was based on identification as they were not named in the F. I. R. The present three accused appellants, Ram Swaroop, Ram Singh and Ram Prasad came to be convicted under Section 396 I. P. C. with sentence of life imprisonment by judgment dated 2-11-1981. They have preferred this appeal.
(2.) THE relevant facts are these: In between the night of 11/12-5- 1978 an armed dacoity was committed at about mid-night in village Babhnauti, P. S. Bela, District Etawah including at the house of Bala Prasad - informant PW 1. THE F. I. R. was lodged on 12-5-1978 at 6. 30 a. m. THE distance of the police station was four miles. THE complainant Bala Prasad was sleeping at the Chabutra outside his house. His daughters Km. Adesh PW 3 and Km. Manju were also sleeping with him. THE house of Ramanand (deceased), Sadanand PW 6 and Shivanand PW 7 was adjacent to the house of the complaint and the Chabutra of both the houses was one and the same. THEse three persons were also sleeping on the said Chabutra. A lantern was alight outside the house and one was inside the house. At about mid-night 8 or 9 dacoits entered into the house. THE womenfolk inside the house raised alarm on which the persons sleeping outside awoke. THE dacoits opened the main door and came at the Chabutra where they fired 2 or 3 shots. THEse shots hit Ramanand, Km. Manju and Km. Adesh. Because of injuries, Ramanand died 4 or 5 days later at Gwalior where he was taken for treatment. THE dacoits committed dacoity at the houses of the complainant Bala Prasad, Ramanand, Lala Basant Lal and Manohar Lal. On shouts, the witnesses Raghubir Sahai, Ram Lal, Mittho, Satish Chandra and others reached the spot. Some Patel was stacked in front of the house of Manni Lal which was set a fire by the witness Shivanand. As a result, the entire area was illuminated. In this light, the three dacoits, namely, Ram Singh, Ram Prasad and Ram Swaroop were recognized by the witnesses. THEy were known to them from before. When the dacoits retreated, the complainant got a report scribed through Raghubir Sahai and gave it at the police station leading to the registering of the case which came to be investigated by S. O. Raja Ram Singh. THE Investigating Officer inspected the spot, prepared the site plan, recorded the statements of the witnesses and did other activities related to investigation. It is not necessary to give details against the other accused who are not the appellants before this Court. After completing investigation, the present three appellants and others were charge-sheeted. The defence of the present accused appellants was of false implication due to enmity. Ram Swaroop contended that he was Dhobi by caste and used to wash clothes of Ramanand, Sadanand and Shivanand. They had filed a report against him regarding theft in which final report was filed and, therefore, he was falsely implicated in this case. Similar was the contention of accused Ram Prasad who contended that a theft report was filed against him by Bala Prasad but a final report was submitted in that case. So, he was falsely implicated in the present case. In support of its case, the prosecution in all examined seven witnesses. Out of them, Bala Prasad PW 1, Jagat Narain PW 2, Adesh Kumari PW 3, Jagdish Narain PW 4, Sadanand PW 6 and Shivanand PW 7 were the witnesses of fact who named all the three present accused appellants as being participants of the dacoity. Adesh Kumari PW 3 was injured also having sustained shot injuries. Suresh Chandra Mathur PW 5 was the Deputy Collector before whom identification proceedings had been conducted in respect of non-appellants.
(3.) WE have heard Sri U. C. Mishra, learned Counsel for the appellants and Sri R. S. Maurya, learned A. G. A. from the side of the State. The record has also been carefully perused. The factum of dacoity was neither disputed before the trial Court nor has the same been challenged by the learned Counsel for the appellants in his arguments before us. The injury reports of Adesh Kumari, Km. Manju, Deo Narain and Ramanand (who subsequently died) are also there on record. The post-mortem of Ramanand is also there. All of them sustained gunshot injuries. So, the trial Judge rightly concluded that the prosecution evidence proved that the complained dacoity had taken place in the fateful night in which several persons received gunshot injuries out of whom Ramanand died also.;