Sengupta, J. - (1.) The aforesaid three appeals have been preferred by the five appellants challenging a common judgement and order of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Sessions Judge, 4th Bench of City Sessions Court, Calcutta in Sessions Trial No. 1 of October, 1996 (Sessions Case No. 26 of 1996) thereby convicting the appellants under Section 148 and Section 302/149 of the Indian Penal Code and sentencing each of them to suffer rigorous imprisonment for life and each of the appellants to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 3 years for the offence under Section 148 of the Indian Penal Code. By the said judgement and order, the learned Trial Judge, however, acquitted all the appellants'of the charge under Section 332/149 of the Indian Penal Code.
(2.) Mr. Dutt, learned Advocate appears in Criminal Appeal No. 324 of 1998 on behalf of appellant Nos. 1 and 2 namely Shaka @ Maqsood Nawaz and Md. Shakil @ Dilsad. Since the third appellant goes unrepresented, we requested Mr. Biplab Mitra, learned Advocate, who also appears on behalf of the appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 178 of 1999, to defend the appellant No. 3 Md. Parvez @ Bura Parvez in Criminal Appeal No. 324 of 1998.
(3.) The prosecution case in short is that on 22.7.95 at about 6 P.M., when the de facto complainant Md. Salim was talking with his cousin Kallu, Mumtaz All @ Bhullu and Azimuddin @ Rajesh in front of the cycle repairing shop of Bhullu, the present accused appellants along with others (absconders) appeared there being armed with pistol, bomb, sword and chopper. Accused Bura Parvez and Sajeed caught hold of the neck of Md. Kallu and dragged him for killing and thereafter, all the accused persons started assaulting Md. Kallu with chopper and sword. When the de facto complainant came forward for the rescue of Md. Kallu, the accused Shaka @ Maqsood Nawaz by showing a pistol asked him to remain silent. After receiving number of injuries on different parts of the body, the condition of Kallu became serious and he was lying on the road in a pool of blood. At that time when the police man from the police station arrived there, Rahamat and Chhoto Parvez hurled bombs as a result of which one police constable namely Giasuddin Khan received injuries. Being attracted by the shouting of the de facto complainant other residents of the locality arrived at the spot. The accused persons fled away through the lane of Marcus Square on hurling bombs. Md. Jafar along with some residents of the locality took the injured Kallu to Visuddhananda Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. Police constable Md. Giasuddin, another injured was treated by Dr. S. Goenka of the same hospital. The statement of Md. Salim was recorded by the police and on the basis of such statement, FIR was registered. During investigation a chopper was recovered by the police pursuant to the statement of one of the co-accused Md. Sakil from a place behind the abandoned room of darwan on the south east corner of Marcus Square Maidan on 6.9.95.;