Rakesh Ranjan Prasad and Amitav Kumar Gupta, JJ. - (1.) HEARD learned Counsel appearing for the appellant and learned Counsel appearing for the State. It is the case of the prosecution that an encounter took place in between the members of the extremist group and the police party on 31.12.2001. In that encounter, three police personnel after sustaining gun -shot injuries died. At the same time, one person from the side of the extremist group also died.
(2.) FURTHER case is that while the encounter was going on, members of the extremist group were calling each other by their names. During that course, the names of Upendra Paswan and other were overheard by the members of the police party. Accordingly, FIR was lodged as Hussainabad P.S. Case No. 1 of 2002 under Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 307, 332, 333, 353, 427, 120B of the Indian Penal Code and also under Sections 3/4 of the Explosive Substance Act, as well as under Section 17 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act and under Sections 31ab, 32, 33, 34, 35, 4ab, 20 lab and 214 a of the Prevention of Terrorism Act. Subsequently, the offence under Sections 25 lb a, 26 and 35 of the Arms Act were added. The matter was taken up for investigation. After completion of investigation, the police submitted charge -sheet under the aforesaid offences against this appellant and four other accused persons. They were put on trial. During trial, four persons namely. Brihaspati Singh, Rambachan Choudhary, Mutur Paswan and Shrawan Ram were discharged for the reason that sanction granted earlier under the provision of the Prevention of Terrorism Act had been withdrawn and their cases were transferred to regular Court for taking up trial. The accused Sukender Paswan was found to be juvenile and hence, his case was sent before the Juvenile Justice Board for trial. In this way, this appellant was alone put on trial in Special Case No. 1 of 2002P whereby prosecution examined witnesses including PW 1, who was one of the members of the police party and identified this appellant during trial. Apart from that, confession made by this appellant in connection with other case was taken to be admissible in view of me provision as contained in Section 32 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act.
(3.) IN those circumstances, the Court did find this appellant guilty for the offences under which charges were framed. Accordingly, this appellant was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000 for each of the offences under Section 302 read with Section 149 of the Indian Penal Code as well as Section 32 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act. Further he was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for ten years and to pay a fine of Rs. 2,000 under Sections 307/149 of the Indian Penal Code and to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000 under Sections 333/149 of the Indian, Penal Code. Further to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years under Section 148 of the Indian Penal Code and to undergo rigorous imprisonment for seven years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1,000 under Section 35 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act and to undergo rigorous sentence for six months under Section 17 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act.;