- (1.) Heard the learned counsel for the appellants and the learned Counsel for the State in all these cases. Swapan Kumar Jha, Appellant in Criminal Appeal 669 of 2010, Amarendra Kumar Sharma @ Vickey, Appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 905 of 2010 and Rockey Dutta, Appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 779 of 2010 have been referred to hereinafter as appellants'No. 1, 2 and 3 respectively. These appeals have been directed against the judgment of conviction and sentence dated 1-7-2010 and 7-7-2010 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, FTC III, Dhanbad, in Sessions Trial No. 88 of 2009 whereby all the appellants have been held guilty for the offences punishable under sections 364A/ 302/201/34 of the Indian Penal Code and accordingly appellants No. 2 and 3 have been sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay fine of Rs. 10,000/- (Rupees ten thousand) each and in default of payment, to undergo further imprisonment for six months. Appellant No. 1 Swapan Kumar Jha has been awarded death sentence for the offence punishable under Section 364A/302 IPC subject to confirmation of the order of conviction and sentence by the High Court. Besides above, all the three appellants have been further sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for seven years and to pay fine of Rs. 10,000/-each under Section 201 IPC and in default, of payment of the fine, they shall suffer further imprisonment for six months.
(2.) Prosecution case, as it appears from the written report lodged by Sri Sudhanshu Shekhar Ojha is that on 28-9-2008 at about 4.30 p. m. after receiving a phone call, Sumit (deceased) son of the informant after informing his mother that he would be coming back within half an hour, left home, but did not return. The informant and other family members got worried and made a search for Sumit, but of no avail. With regard to the missing of Sumit, information was given to the Police Station on 29-9-2008 after which Station Diary Entry was made at Jharia Police Station. It is further disclosed that on 1-10-2008 in the morning, the informant on his land-line phone No. 2460618 received a call and the unknown caller demanded ransom from the informant. The aforesaid call made the informant under belief that his son Sumit has been kidnapped by some person. Thereafter, a written report was lodged on 1-10-2008 at Jharia Police Station on the basis of which Jharia PS Case No. 280 of 2008 under sections 364 A of the Indian Penal Code was registered against the holder of Mobile No. 9798148773. During investigation, dead body of Sumit was recovered after which Sections 302/201/34 IPC had also been added on 23-10-2008. During investigation, involvement of these appellants in the alleged kidnapping and murder of Sumit Kumar Ojha alias Govind was surfaced whereafter Swapan Kumar Jha and Amarendra Kumar Sharma @ Vickky were apprehended and they made their confessional statement disclosing therein that they had hired an Indica Car No. JH 09D 6666 and made a plan to kidnap Gautam Kumar Ojha (brother of the deceased) who was studying at Kolkata. Thereafter, all the three appellants went to Kolkata on 24-9-2008 and stayed in a hotel. The plan of kidnapping for ransom was mainly hatched out by Swapan Kumar Jha and initially he made target to Gautam who is none else, but the maternal cousin of Swapan Kumar Jha and accordingly Gautam was taken into contact. In course of wandering with the appellants, Gautam Kumar Ojha sent SMS to his room-mate informing that he is in the company of the accused persons. Considering the aforesaid aspect, the appellants dropped their plan to kidnap Gautam Kumar Ojha and returned to Jharia (Dhanbad) and again targeted Sumit Kumar @ Govind who was younger brother of Gautam. On some pretext, Sumit was called by the appellants whereafter, Sumit met with them near Children Park, Jharia and from there, he boarded in the Indica car occupied by appellants Swapan Kumar Jha and Vickky Sharma besides the driver of the said car. Sumit was taken by them to Khalsa Hotel, Govindpur and they were also followed by the friends of the appellants who were in a Bolero car. All of them wanted to consume liquor in the hotel, but Sumit did not agree to consume liquor in the hotel, as a result, they purchased a wine/whiskey bottle and proceeded towards Giridih. On the way to Giridih, all of them consumed liquor and Sumit too was forced to have. They went to the house of Vickky Sharma appellant No. 2, where tea mixed with sleeping drug was administered to Sumit after which he slept and was removed by the companion of the appellants towards Kolkata. Thereafter the appellants had made a call demanding Rs. 20,000,00/- (Rupees twenty lakhs) from the informant against release of Sumit, but Appellants. 1 and 2 were apprehended by the Police and were forwarded to Jail custody.
(3.) The appellants were taken on police remand after which again confession of appellant No. 1 was recorded on the basis of which the dead body of Sumit @ Govind was recovered, in the presence of an Executive Magistrate, the witnesses and the public, from a graveyard situated at Bhandaridih, Dist. Giridih. The process of digging out the dead body was also videographed. At the conclusion of the investigation/charge sheet against these appellants was submitted and they were put on trial.;