BILLU SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Billu Singh, original accused No. 1 and Gurbhagat Singh, original accused No. 2 are the appellants in this appeal. They along with seven others were tried for offences punishable under Sections 148, 302 read with 149 I.P.C. The trial Court acquitted four of them and convicted the rest including the two appellants. They preferred an appeal and the High Court convicted the two appellants under Sections 302 read with 34 I.P.C. and acquitted the remaining three accused. Hence the present appeal.

(2.) The accused, the material witnesses namely P.Ws4, 10, 11 and 13 and the deceased Mohinder Singh belong to the village Khiali Chehlanwali. There was some previous enmity between the deceased and the accused. On 17-3-1980 the deceased along with his wife PW 4 had gone to village Jhunir to attend a fair and were returning at about 5 P.M. to their village. The deceased was also carrying his licensed gun with him. When they reached the school building at village Jhunir after ascending the bridge over the canal the accused variously armed confronted them. Among them Billu Singh-the appellant was armed with a Kulhari and the other appellant Gurbhagat Singh was armed with a Gandasa. The accused raised a lalkara and told the deceased that he cannot escape. The two appellants rushed forward and caught hold of the deceased in their grip. Thereupon two of the acquitted accused dealt blows with Gandasa and Takwa. The deceased fell down on the ground. One of the acquitted accused Balbir Singh picked up the gun of the deceased. At that stage the first appellant gave two Kulhari blows on the ribs of the deceased and the other appellant Gurbhagat Singh gave two Gandasa blows with the reverse side to the deceased. He was again beaten up and the gun of the deceased also was broken. PW4 raised alarm and on hearing the same P.Ws 10 and 11 who had been witnessing the occurrence from a short distance rushed to the spot. On seeing them the accused ran away.

(3.) P.Ws4, 10 and 11 carried the deceased to the Civil Hospital, Mansa in a car and got him admitted there. PW 4 returned to her village as she had to look after her children. Next day morning, she visited the hospital and in the meantime, P.W. 14, A. S. I. received the information and he went to the hospital, obtained a certificate from the doctor that the deceased was not in a position to speak. Thereafter he recorded the statement of P.W. 4 on the basis of which the first information report was lodged. The case was registered under Section 307 I.P.C. at that stage. The deceased, however, died at about 9.20 a.m. on 19-3-1980 and thereafter the case was converted into one under Section 302 I.P.C. After the inquest was held, the dead body was sent for post-mortem. The Doctor, P.W. 1, who conducted the post-mortem, found as many as ten injuries. Out of them injuries Nos. 1, 2 and 4 were incised wounds and the rest were contusions and abrasions. On dissection the Doctor found there was a fracture of skull bones and he also found a fracture of ribs and laceration of lung. He opined that the death was due to these injuries and that injuries Nos. 1 to 4, 6 and 7 were individually sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death. The plea of the accused was one of the denial.