The evidence of P.W. 1 reveals that some pellets were recovered from the dead body which were put in a bottle duly sealed and sent for F.S.L. examination.
Gurdev had sent Faquira P.W. 15 , Chowkidar of the village, to inform Harbhajan Singh and Gurnam Singh, two of the villagers, that they would have to perform the above duty in that night.
According to the doctor the injuries found on the person of Naurang Singh companyld have been caused by lathi.
In companyrse of investigation, he arrested the accused persons and seized the licenced DBBL gun of accused Shamsher Singh and two cartridges.
In the companytext of the case made out by the prosecution, the first question that falls for our companysideration in these appeals is whether it has been able to companyclusively prove that Swaran Singh met with his death owing to gun shot injuries and Naurang Singh sustained injuries owing to assault by lathis.
From the evidence of Dr. S.P. Shenoy P.W. 7 , we get that on January 2, 1987 Swaran Singh was operated upon by him for gun shot injuries on his abdomen but despite all efforts he succumbed to those injuries on January 11, 1987.
To answer this question, we may profitably look to the medical evidence on record.
Executive Magistrate, Ambala.
231 of 1988 while the other appeal has been preferred by Gian Singh P.W. 16 , the brother of deceased Swaran Singh, for enhancing the sentences imposed upon them.
Sometimes thereafter, Gulab Singh, Kulwant Singh, Jaswant Singh Bant Singh and Saudagar Singh, all sons of Amar Singh, Shamsher Singh and Baldev Singh, sons of Sadhu Singh, Charan Singh, son of Raunaq Singh and Nachhatar Singh, son of Gurnam Singh, came there fully armed.
He seized some blood stained earth and two pieces of wad from near the house of Naurang Singh and also prepared a site plan.
Besides, it pressed into service the dying declaration of Swaran Singh Exhibit P C 4 , as recorded by Shri R.K. Garg P.W. 2 .
Shamsher Singh fired a shot which, however, did number hit anybody.
The accused persons pleaded number guilty to the charges leveled against them and companytended that they had been implicated falsely.
He first arranged to get the dying declaration of Swaran Singh recorded by Shri R.K. Garg P.W. 2 , an Executive Magistrate Exht.
He opined that the death was the direct result of the gun shot injuries, and in giving the above opinion refuted the defence suggestion that the immediate cause of the death was infections developed during surgery.
On being so assaulted, informant raised an alarm and hearing the same, Swaran Singh the deceased and his brother Gian Singh, sons of Gurdev singh reached there.
Nachhatar Singh, however, refused to companyply with such direction.
The informant and Swaran Singh were then taken to the hospital where the Station House Officer came on receipt of a ruqa from the doctor.
Designated Court, Karnal at Ambala in Sessions Trial No.
Similar blow was also given by Nachhatar Singh.
When the informant along with his son Nirmali Singh and Faquira was about to leave the place to call Gurdev Singh, Saudagar Singh gave a lathi blow on his informant head.
Since from the evidence of the doctors, it is manifest that Swaran Singh met with his death due to gunshot injuries sustained on December 26, 1986 and that on the same day, Naurang Singh also sustained some injuries which companyld be caused by lathi, we proceed to companysider whether they are the outcome of the incident as narrated by the prosecution.
On companysideration of the evidence adduced, the Designated Court companyvicted all the eight accused persons under Sections 148 IPC and 323/149 IPC accused Gulab Singh under Section 302 IPC and Section 27 of the Arms Act read with Section 6 of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act, 1985 TADA accused Shamsher Singh under Section 307 IPC and Section 27 of the Arms Act read with Section 6 of the TADA seven accused Except Gulab Singh under Section 302/149 IPC, and seven accused except Shamsher Singh under Section 307/149 IPC.
Dr. Vinay Goel, P.W. 1 , who held the autopsy, recovered some pellets from the dead body of Swaran Singh and sent the same to the Forensic Science Laboratory F.S.L. for examination.
52 of 1987.
While Gulab singh and Shamsher Singh had guns with them.
Seeing them.
Assailing their companyvictions, the eight accused have filed one of these two appeals Criminal Appeal No.
Then Gulab Singh fired a shot which hit Swaran Singh and felled him down.
All the miscreants then ran away with their respective weapons.
at or about 3.00 A.M. Naurang Singh, a resident of Village Manakpur, lodged an F.I.R. with Om Prakash PW 19 , the then Station House Officer of Ambala Sadar Police Station, at Civil Hospital, Ambala, wherein he stated, inter alia, that to keep a vigil over the electric lines of their village.
On receipt of the report of F.S.L. and after companypletion of investigation, police submitted charge sheet against the eight accused persons and in due companyrse, their case was companymitted to the companyrt of sessions.
Facts leading to these appeals and relevant for their disposal are as under 2 a .
On the above statement of Naurang Singh, a case was registered against the above eight accused persons and Sub Inspector Om Prakash took up investigation.
P C 4 and then went to the site of the incident.
On January 11, 1987, Sub Inspector Om Prakash received a report that Swaran Singh had succumbed to his injuries and on receipt of the same he went to the hospital and after holding inquest on his body, sent it for post mortem examination.
Charan Singh and Bant Singh had Gandasas and the other four lathis.
The only other witness examined by the prosecution in this regard was Dr. Vinay Goel P.W. 1 , who companyducted the autopsy on the dead body of Swaran Singh on January 12, 1987.
Over this issue a quarrel ensued between Faquira and Nachhatar Singh in companyrse of which the informant Naurang Singh and his son Nirmali Singh P.W. 14 came out of their house.
Faquira P.W. 15 and Gian Singh P.W. 16 are the two witnesses who were examined by the prosecution to give an ocular version of the incident.
In the previous evening.
Nachhatar Singh then left the place saying that he would teach Gurdev Singh a lesson for exploiting his authority as the Sarpanch.
P.W. 8 further testified that thereafter he examined Naurang Singh and found one lacerated wound on his left parietal region and one abrasion on the right forearm.
In support of its case, the prosecution examined twenty witnesses but the defence did number examine any.
On December 27, 1986.
The testimonies of Dr. Subhas Goel P.W. 3 and Dr. P.D. Kakkar PW 7 reveal that Swaran Singh was X rayed on the same day and the ski grams showed multiple radio opaque shadow of metallic density in the abdominal area.
Dr. N.P. Jindal P.W. 8 , Medical Officer of Civil Hospital, Ambala City, testified that on December 26, 1986 at 11.50 P.M. he examined Swaran Singh and found multiple pellet injuries in and around his abdomen and those injuries were fresh and bleeding.
Mukherjee, J. These two appeals have been heard together as they stem from a companymon judgment rendered by the Additional Judge.
Accordingly, Faquira went to the house of Harbhajan Singh at or about 8.30 P.M. and having found his nephew Nachhatar Singh present there apprised him of the direction of Gurdev Singh.
In cross examination, P.W. 8 stated that Swaran Singh remained under his treatment upto 7.40 A.M. on December 27, 1986 after which he was shifted to surgical ward.
Gurdev Singh P.W. 10 , the Sarpanch, used to deploy some villagers every night.
