- (1.) All the appellants were put on trial to face charges under Sections 447, 379, 147, 148, 302/149, of the Indian Penal Code on the allegations that they in prosecution of their common object did commit murder of Chhatan Mistry. The trial court having found the appellants guilty for the said charges sentenced them to undergo life imprisonment under Section 302 read with Section 149 of the Indian Penal Code. Further they were sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years under Section 147 of the Indian Penal Code. Both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently. However, no separate sentence was passed for the offence under Section 379 and 447 of the Indian Penal Code.
(2.) The case of the prosecution is that the informant Murari Mistry (P.W.13) when came to his field on 6.7.1984 along with his father Chhatan Mistry, who was having gun and also a bag containing documents relating to the land, they saw all the appellants variously armed present over there and of them, the appellant, Abhilakh Mahto was ploughing the field to whom Chhatan Mistry (the deceased) asked not to plough from the field as the case has been decreed in his favour. But Charitar Dubey, who in course of trial died, exhorted others to kill him and by saying so he fired shot which hit on the leg of Chhatan Mistry, as a result of which, he fell down and then all the appellants started assaulting him with lathi indiscriminately. Thereafter, Sita Ram Choubey and Charitar Dubey sat over the chest and started pressing it. Thereupon all the accused persons started dragging him who raised alarm and upon it informant came over there to rescue him but he was also assaulted by the appellant Surya Deo Mahto and, therefore, he ran away from there raising alarm, upon which when villagers assembled, accused persons fled away by breaking the gun into pieces and also by taking away the bag. Thereafter when the family members as well as villagers came over there, they took Chhatan Mistry to Bishrampur Police Station on cot from where he was taken to Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. There at State Dispensary Bishrampur, Fardbeyan (Ext.4) of Murari Mistry, son of the deceased was recorded on the same day, i.e, on 6.7.1984 at 2.30 P.M. and the matter was taken up for investigation by Nageshwar Prasad Singh (P.W.14) who held inquest over the dead body and prepared an inquest report (Ext.5) and then inspected the place of occurrence from where he seized broken gun and a bag under seizure list (Ext.6). Thereafter dead body was sent for post mortem examination which was conducted by Dr. Ranjan Kumar Pandey (P.W.12) who found the following injuries on the person of the deceased. (i) Multiple abrasions on the sizes varying from 1/2 " x 1/2 " x skin deep to 3" x 1/2" x skin deep on right knee and leg. (ii) Multiple contusions of the size varying from 3" x 1" to 5" x 1" on the right knee with swelling of the knee and fracture of right patellar bone. (iii) Oval lacerated wound 1- 1/2" x1" x 1/2 " on the middle of the left leg with ecchymosis around the wound. (iv) Contusions 3" x 1" and 3- 1/2 " x 1" on the left knee. (v) Incised wound 2- 1/2 " x 1- 1/2 " x 1/4 " on the upper part of the right side of the scrotum. (vi) Abrasion of the size 6" x 4- 1/2 " x skin deep on the right glottal region. (vii) Abrasion 1/2 " x 1/2 " on the lower part of the right side of the back. (viii) Lower part of the right arm and elbow swollen black in Colour with fracture of the obecranon process of the right ulnar bone. (ix) Abrasion 3" x 1" x skin deep on the middle of the left arm. (x) Multiple abrasions of the size 1/2 " x 1/2 " and skin deep to 1- 1/2 " x 1/2 " x skin deep on the left elbow and upper part of the left forearm. (xi) Incised wound of the size 1" x 1/4 " x bone deep on knuckle of the left index finger with fracture of the underlying bone. (xii) Black coloured defused swelling of the right side of the face.
(3.) Accordingly, Doctor issued post mortem examination report (Ext.3) with an opinion that death was caused by shock and haemorrhage. After completion of investigation, police submitted charge sheet, upon which cognizance of the offence was taken and in due course when the case was committed to the court of sessions, charges were framed against the appellants to which they pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried.;