JUGAL KISHORE LAHA Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an appeal against an order of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Bankura, in Sessions Case No. 2 of June, 1979. All the 4 appellants stood charged under Sections 447, 323 and 304, Part I of the Penal Code. All of them were found guilty under Section 304, Part II, I. P. C. Appellants Madan Laha, Panchanan Laha and Thakurdas Santal alias Hansda were sentenced to suffer R. I. for 7 years each while the appellant Jugal Kishore was sentenced to suffer R. I. for 3 years. All the 4 appellants were also found guilty under Sections 447 and 323, I. P. C. and sentenced to suffer R. I. for 3 months and 6 months each, respectively.

(2.) THE prosecution case in brief is as follows: Plots Nos. 34 and 75 of Mouza Kankrasole, P. S. Raipur belonged to the informant, Anjan Kumar Nad and his brothers. They had grown paddy on the lands in the relevant year. On the morning of 29 -11 -1978 Niranjan Nad (P. W. 3) found the accused persons being armed with lathis and axe engaged in harvesting the crop grown by the Nad brothers. Niranjan reported the matter to Anjan (P. W. 1), Angsu (P. W. 2) and Tarini (since deceased) who thereupon went to Raipur P. S. while Niranjan came back to the paddy field. At the P. S. Anjan made a statement which was recorded by the Officer -in -Charge and on the basis thereof notices under Section 154, C. P. C. were issued and a copy of the same was served upon P. W. 1 at the P. S. while another copy was directed to be served upon the accused persons on the spot. The Nad Brothers -being accompanied by two constables and an A. S. I. set out for the disputed land. While coming near the plot Tarini went ahead of the party and asked the accused persons not to cut the paddy from their land. He was closely followed by his brothers and the police party. On the land the accused Panchanan and Madan assaulted Tarini with lathi on his head. Angsu rushed to the rescue of Tarini when Madan and Panchanan struck him on his forehead with lathi while the accused Thakurdas hit him with an axe. Both Tarini and Angsu fell down upon the land with bleeding injuries. It is also the prosecution case that Niranjan also was assaulted on his right hand by a lathi by Madan. The accused persons along with their weapons were arrested by the police party immediately after the incident. A little later S. I. R. P. Banerjee, the Investigating Officer reached the spot. He seized the weapons as also a part of the harvested crop under seizure lists. The victims of as -sults were sent to Raipur Primary Health Centre in a police jeep. Thereafter P. W. 1 gave a written statement to the S. I. R. P. Banerjee which was forwarded by him through the Chowkidar, P. W. 16 to the Police Station (Ext 1). This written complaint has been treated as the F. I. R. and the formal F. I. R. was drawn up by P. W. 18 at the P. S. (Ext 1/1). The victim Tarini was forwarded from Raipur Primary Health Centre to Bankura Hospital where he died on the very same night. On the basis of the case as aforesaid the accused persons stood variously charged under the different sections mentioned above.

(3.) AS many as 21 witnesses were examined in the case for prosecution. The defence did not adduce any evidence oral or documentary. Of the witnesses P. Ws. 1, 2 and 3 are the principal eye -witnesses to the occurrence. P. Ws. 4 and 5 are police constables and P. W. 15 Rajyesswar Das is an A. S. I. of Felice who accompanied the Nad brothers from Raipur P. S. They are also, thereafter supposed to be witnesses to the occurrence. P. Ws. 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are seizure list witnesses. P. W. 11 is a Doctor of the Raipur Primary Health Centre. He examined Angsu on 29 -11 -1978 and Niranjan on 30 -11 -1978. He did not examine Tarini for, before his arrival at the Hospital he is said to have been sent to Bankura at the instance of the compounded The compounder, however, was not examined. P. W. 14 Dr. D. Dhar held post -mortem examination on the dead body of one Tarini Nad on the identification by constable No. 1070, Ranjit Banerjee in connection with Bankura P. S. U. D. Case No. 215 dated 30 -11 -1978. He found two injuries of which injury No. 1 was fatal. According to the Doctor this injury was caused by a single blow. P. W. 19 is the Junior Land Reforms Officer who held an enquiry in regard to the possession of the two plots in connection with the Raipur P. S. case. His report, Exhibit 5 indicates as if the Nad brothers were in possession. P. W. 20 is the I. O. of the case and P. W. 21 Sukdeb Layek held inquest on the dead body of Tarini pursuant to the information of the Ward Master of the hospital. The inquest report has been marked Ext. B. This witness sent the dead body to the morgue through constable, Ranjit Banerjee.