- (1.) V. P. Mathur, J. This appeal is directed against the judgment and order passed by Mr. G. R. S. Tandon, the then 1st Additional Sessions Judge, Muzaffarnagar on 28-6-1978 whereby the learned Judge has convicted Rajendra Singh appellant on a charge under Section 302 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code and sentencsd him to imprisonment for life.
(2.) IN brief the prosecution story was that the deceased Hoshiar Singh a brahman of village-kinoni, was present in the night between 19/20-10-1970 in the tube-well room out-side the village in the Jungle, because the tube-well was running and his son Satypal (PW 1) who is the first informant; was present in the field nearby where the water from tube-well was going. Two other persons Ram Singh and Jagdish Prasad were also present at their respec tive tube-wells giving water to their agricultural fields. At the precise time when this occurrence took place, Jagdish Prasad (PW 6) had also come from his tube-well to the place where Ram Singh (PW 3) was sitting and enjoying Hukka Suddenly Hoshiyar Singh cried. Theories were heard by Satya Pal (PW 1) and the two other witnesses Sam Singh and Jagdish Prasad and they immediately rushed towards the scene of occurrence. The distance of the place of occurrence from the place where Satya Pal was present inside the field, has not been disclosed as 60 to 70 yards in the evidence and it appears that the place where Jagdish and Ram Singh were sitting and smoking was between 60 to 85 paces away from tae tub-well of Hoshayar Singh and it has also been variously stated by the witnesses that Satya Pal was present not very far away from this place. It is contended that by the time that the witnesses reached a few paces from the kotha of Hoshiyar Singh, they saw the appellant Rajendra Singh armed with a Palkati along with an unidentified person who was armed with a kanta delivering blows to Hoshiyar Singh, who was sitting on his charpoy. After committing the murder of Hoshiyar Singh, these two persons ran away from the spot, but the witnesses could see and identify Rajendra Singh; Then Ram Singh was sent to the village to bring people who col lected on the spot at about 5 in the morning and Gokul was picked up from out of them to scribe the report at the dictation of Satya Pal. With this report Satya Pal proceeded for the Police Station of Tatavi District Muzaffar nagar within the area of which village kinoni lies and lodged the first inform ation report at 9. 15 a. m. on 20-10- 1977. Station Officer Tetavi M. Ratan Singh (PW 8) along with Sub-Inspector Har Phool Singh (PW 5) came on the scene of occurrence without Against the judgment and order dated 28-6-78 passed by Shri G. R. S. Tandon, 1st Addl. Sessions Judge, Muzaffar Nagar in Sessions Trial No. A-431 of 1977 losing much of time and it was Har Phool Singh who prepared the inquest memo while Ratan Singh proceeded with the rest of the investigation including the recording of the statements of the witnesses and preparation of the docu ments. The dead body was brought to the mortuary on 20-10-1977 where post mortem examination was conducted by Dr. S. L. Gupta (PW 2) at 2. 00 p. m. vide, report Ext-ka-2. The deceased Hoshiyar Singh had suffered so many as 13 injuries on his person, which according to the post mortem report are as follows: 1. Incised wound 3" X 1/2" x bone deep on left side skull 2-1/2" above the ear anterior posterior. 2. Incised wound 1" X 1/4" X bone on left side skull 1" behind the ear, vertebrae. 3. Incised wound 3/4" X 1/10" X muscle on left side forehead 1/2" above the eye brow horizontal. Incised wound 3/4" X 1/4" x bone of the right mindable vertical, fating down wards, underlying mandible in clean cut.
(3.) INCISED wound 2-1/2" x 1/4" x muscle on the submontat region 3/4" below point of chin, oblique, talking down ward to the right. Incised wound 2-1/2" x 1" X muscle on the posterior of neck just above supra sternal notch, transverse, tailing on the left side the medial end of right collar bone is clean cut underneath injury.;