- (1.) M. C. Agarwal, J. These two appeals are directed against the judgment and order dated 7-8-1980 passed by the Illrd Additional Sessions Judge, Fatehpur, whereby the learned Addl. Sessions Judge found appellants Bhola, Lootey, Harish Chandra, Bhadaiya and Ram Vishal in Ap peal No. 1717 of 1980 guilty of offences under Sections 147/148 and 302/149, IPC The appellants Harish Chandra and Bhadaiya have been convicted for the of fence under Section 148, IPC and sen tenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years each. Appellants Bhola Lootey and Ram Vishal were found guilty of an offence under Section 147, IPC and have been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of one year each. All the five appellants have been found guilty of an offence under Section 302 read with Section 149, IPC and have been sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life. The appellants have also found guilty of an offence under Section 201, IPC but no separate conviction has been recorded against them because they have been convicted for the main offence under Section 302, IPc
(2.) KULLI and Shripal appellants in criminal Appeal No. 1716 of 1980 have been found guilty of an offence under Sec tion 201, IPC read with Section 149, IPC and have been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of three years each and to pay a fine of Rs. 100 each and in default of payment of fine to undergo imprisonment for a period of three months. We have heard Sri J. S. Sengar learned Counsel for the appellants in both the appeals and Sri Anoop Ghosh, Addi tional Government Advocate for the State. The prosecution commenced on the basis of first information report pur porting to have been orally lodged by Smt. Bhanmati wife of Monohar resident of village Loharan Garhwa, police station Ghazipur at 3. 10 p. m. at police station Ghazipur in the district of Fatehpur. The story set up in this F. I. R. which is Exhibit Ka-1 is on record was that at about 10 0' clock in the day on 13-9-1979 she alongwith her sister- in-law (Deorani) Smt. Laxmaniya and her children Kunni Devi and Shyam aged 6 and 7 years and bhanja Bodhi who used to live with them, was sitting at the Chabutra of her house. Lootey alongwith his brother Bhola and son Harish Chandra and Bhadaiya son of Bhola and Ram Vishal son of Sanwaliya who are resident of the same village and belonged to the informant's caste i. e. Kevat and live in the neighbourhood of her house arrived there. Harish Chandra and Bhadaiya were armed with axes (Kul- hari) while Lootey, Bhola and Ram Vishal had lathis. Lootey and Harish Chandra caught hold of Bodhi and started dragging him. As Bodhi resisted all the accused thrashed him to the ground and then dragged him to the door of their house. She and the aforesaid members of her family raised an alarm and tried to intervene but the assailants threatened them. They as saulted Bodhi with lathis and Kulhari and killed him. The first informant Smt. Bhan-mati and other persons including Prasad, Girdhari and Rajaram who arrived at the spot, saw the occurrence from the place in front of the house of Ghasitey. The ac cused said that the deadbody be thrown in the Yamuna river after severing the head. Some other persons of the village were also attracted to the spot but no body dared to intervene. Accused Shripal and Kulli also arrived there. Lootey accused asked Shripal to bring his bullock and put the dead body in the cart of Gaya Prasad and proceeded towards river Yamuna. Bhan-mati ran towards the cart to prevent the assailants from taking away the deadbody out she was pushed with force and the assailants moved away, brandishing their weapons.
(3.) THE F. I. R. also mentions the mo tive for this crime. It is stated that at about 10 a. m. the same day there was an exchange of words between Lootey's mother and Bodhi and Bodhi had accused 'lootey's mother of defaming them. In that incident Bodhi was alleged to have given 2-3 first blows to that lady. It is for this reason that the accused attacked and killed Bodhi. It was stated in the F. I. R. that the accused have taken the deadbody for throwing in Yamuna river and that she has come to the police station running and stumbling and that quick action be taken to prevent the dead body of Bodhi being thrown in the Yamuna river which was being carried by the aforesaid seven persons. On this information the investiga tion of the case was taken up by S. I. Salik Ram Tiwari who is said to have recorded the statement of first informant at the police station itself and reached village Loharan Garhwa at 4. 30 p. m. He collected samples 'of blood-stained and unstained earth from the passage in front of the house of Shiv Nath and sealed them in separate containers and prepared a recovery memo. One Shiv Sagar is said to have informed him that the accused have taken the deadbody of Bodhi in a bullockcart towards Yamuna river and that if an attempt is made immediately the dead body as well as the accused may be avail able. The Investigation Officer recorded the statement of Shiv Sagar and immedi ately started towards Yamuna river alongwith Shiv Sagar and others. On the way he met Suraj Pal who also told him that he had seen the accused going with a dead body in a cart. He proceeded seeing the wheel marks of the cart and arrived at the Guthana Ghat on the bank of river Yamuna. At one place at the ghat he found some earth to have scrapped and about 200 yards west of the ghat he found of lot of blood at one place and also a baniyan smeared with blood. This gave him an im pression that the dead body of Bodhi was placed there. He took samples of blood stained and unstained sand from the place, sealed them separately and prepared a memo. He also took into his possession the baniyan and sealed the same and prepared a memo. By the time this was over it became dark and it was not possible to search for the dead body. Therefore, he left constables Ram Singh and Om Prakash at that place with necessary in structions asking them to keep a watch and to make a search in the morning. When the Investigating Officer was returning to the police station one Prithvi Pal met him on the way and told that on the north east of the abadi of village Kunwapar, accused Lootey, Harish Chandra and Bhola had left a bullock-cart. He reached that spot and found the bullock-cart there. On ex amining the same with care he noticed blood on the pataili of the front part of the cart. He took the blood stained portion in his possession by getting it out with a saw. The same was kept in a sealed cover and seizure memo was prepared. The site-plan of the spot prepared. Thereafter, he recorded the statements of Prahlad, Ram Adhar, Devi Dayal and Shiv Sagar. On 14-9-1979 he again went to the place of occurrence and prepared a site-plan there of. Accused Bhola was arrested on 15-9-1979. He recorded his statement and ar rived at the police station alongwith various articles connected with the case and the bullock-cart aforesaid. The bul locks were given in the supurdagi of one Brahma Din. On 26-9-1979 he received information that accused Lootey, Harish Chandra, Bhadaiya, Ram Vishal, Kulli and Shripal have surrendered in the Court on 25-9-1979 and sent of jail. He recorded their statements. Two other persons, namely, Durga and Prasadi who were prosecuted in this case for the offence under Section 201, IPC and have since been acquitted had also surrendered before the Court and thereafter the Inves tigating Officer submitted a charge-sheet against these nine persons.;