- (1.) THIS appeal is directed against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 7th September 2000 passed in Sessions Trial No. 671 of 1997/87 of 1997 whereby and where under the learned Additional Judicial Commissioner, Lohardaga held the appellants guilty under Section 395 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and convicted and sentenced them to undergo RI for ten years. The appellant No. 1, Qudus Ansari was further found guilty under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and he was further sentenced to undergo RI for ten years but both the sentences were directed to run concurrently.
(2.) THE prosecution case in brief is that dacoity in the house of one Narendra Bhagat, the informant, was committed on 31st July 1996 and FIR was lodged on 1.8.1996. Dacoity was said to have been committed at about 8.00 PM in the night in which several household articles including pieces of jewellry were looted by the dacoits and one of the dacoits committed rape on Hiramani Toppo, wife of Jagarnath Bhagat, On the basis of fardbeyan, a case bearing Kisko PS case No. 50 of 1996 under Section 395/376 IPC was registered and the IO after investigation submitted charge -sheet. Cognizance in the case was taken and the case was committed to the Court of Sessions and the learned Court below recorded the evidence of witnesses ''both orally and documentary ''and came to a finding and held the appellants guilty under Section 395/376 IPC and convicted and sentenced them as aforesaid. Prosecution has examined altogether ten witnesses. PW 1 is Heeramani Toppo, she is the eye -witness as well as the victim lady. PW 2 is hearsay witness. He says that at the time of occurrence he was in Khelari and on return, he came to know about the occurrence of dacoity. PW 3 is a witness to the seizure list. PW 4 is also witness to the seizure list. PW 5 is a witness who says that he knows nothing about the occurrence. PW 6 although is an eye -witness but he has not identified any of the dacoits. PW 7 is also a witness on the same point. PW 8 is Narendra Bhagat. He is also eye -witness as well as informant of the case and he has supported the prosecution case, but in Para 8 he has admitted that he appeared in TIP and identified dacoits but before he appeared in TIP, dacoits were shown to him at the PS. PW 9 is Circle Officer who conducted TIP of articles. PW 10 is Judicial Magistrate who conducted TIP of suspects.
(3.) PW 1 and PW 8 have supported the prosecution case but PW 1 has admitted in her evidence, recorded in Para -16, that before she appeared in TIP, suspects were shown to her in jail gate and thereafter she appeared in TIP and identified one of the dacoits: Similarly, PW 8 in Para -7 has supported the prosecution case, no doubt but has admitted that the suspects were shown to him at the PS and thereafter he appeared in the TIP and identified them.;