AMAR DUTT, J. - (1.) RAJESH Kumar son of Daya Nand has filed the present appeal to challenge the conviction and sentence recorded against him by the Additional Sessions Judge, Sonepat on 12/14.9.2000.
(2.) BRIEFLY stated, the facts of the prosecution case as brought out in the testimony of its witnesses are that Shivam son of Sunil Goyal PW-1 was a student of Hindu Vidhya Peeth School, Sonepat. Appellant Rajesh Kumar was stated to be a former employee of Sunil Goyal PW-1, who had been relieved from his service one month prior to the abduction of Shivam PW-6 because his employer had detected some cases of theft being carried out by the appellant. Shobha Goyal wife of Sunil Goyal had been told by Shivam that even after leaving the employment, appellant used to visit to meet him in the school and she had asked the child to stay away from the appellant. On 5.5.1999 at 7.00 a.m. Shivam PW-6 was dropped by his father at Hindu Vidhya Peeth School, Sonepat. The school time was to end at 10.30 a.m. At that time, when Driver Pawan Kumar PW-4 had gone to pick up the child, he found that Shivam PW-6 was not present there. The class teacher Jyoti PW-3 had informed Pawan Kumar PW-4 that Shivam had been taken away from the school by Rajesh appellant about 15 minutes prior. Pawan Kumar PW-4 in turn informed his father Sunil Goyal, who suspecting foul play immediately lodged an FIR Ex. PA at 12.35 p.m. in Police Station City, Sonepat. The special report was delivered to the Illaqa Magistrate at 2.00 p.m. On the following day, at 6.00 p.m. Sunil Goyal PW-1 received a telephonic message from a person, who was identified by Sunil Goyal PW-1 as Rajesh Kumar appellant, to the effect that he was speaking from Kota and an amount of Rs. 10 lacs should be kept in a blue bag and delivered to him at Kota Railway Station. The colour of the bag was fixed for fixing identity of the person desirous of delivering the amount. The message was passed on by Sunil Goyal PW-1 to his brother Mahabir Goyal PW-7 and CID Inspector Mange Ram. Mahabir Goyal PW-7 had deposed that his brother Sunil Goyal had told him that money should reach at Kota by 10.00 a.m. failing which Shivam would lose his life. In view of this threat, on 7.5.1999 Sh. H.S. Doon, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Sonepat, Inspector Nripjit Singh, S.H.P., Police Station City, Sonepat PW-12 and other police officials had accompanied Mahabir Goyal, Anil Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Mange Ram Dahiya and Om Parkash Saroha travelled in cars to Mota for laying trap and recovering Shivam from his abductor. On reaching Kotal, Deputy Superintendent of Police had formed three parties to close in from different directions on the Railway Station. Mahabir Goyal PW-7 had seen a rickshaw man standing near gate of the Railway Station waving a school bag. Mahabir Goyal and Anil Kumar at the first occasion could not pick up the import of waiving of school bag and gone (went ?) into the Railway Station and searched for Rajesh Kumar and when they had not been able to trace the appellant, they came back to the place where the rickshaw man was standing and on being approached they had found that school bag contained note books of Shivam and the rickshaw man handed over a slip Ex. PC to the following effect :- "You want child, I want Money. Money give This Man. Your boy He Resevd."
(3.) THIS slip was taken into possession by the police through memo Ex. PC/1. Thereafter, the police made enquiries and in response thereto the rickshaw man had informed them that the slip had been given to him for delivering to a person who would claim the bag of child with instructions to collect the blue bag and deliver the same to him. As per the instructions of the Deputy Superintendent of Police though the blue bag was not handed over to the rickshaw man yet he was asked to take Mahabir Goyal and others to the place where the person, who had given the slip was standing. On reaching the premises of a school which was at a distance of about 1/2 kilometer from the Railway Station, Kota, the witnesses found a small crowd having gathered in front of the school, which was saying that a man called Rajesh had abandoned a school going child in the school premises and on going to the school premises, they had found Shivam sitting in the Principal's room on a chair. The child was, thereafter, evidently brought back to Sonepat where after completion of investigation, a challan was presented before the Illaqa Magistrate, who in turn committed the same to the Court of Sessions as the offence was exclusively triable by that Court.;