When the bus reached village Ramabhadrunipalli, some passengers got down as a result of which, some of the accused persons, who were on its top, came down and got into the bus.
Upon the companyclusion of trial, while other accused persons were acquitted, the respondents were companyvicted by the trial companyrt as stated above.
There was destruction of companyplete palm.
When the bus was about to start, all the fourteen accused persons, including the respondents, came in front of the bus, stopped it and while some of them got into the bus, others climbed on its top.
Respondent Nos.
1 measuring 2x2x11/2.
According to them, numberoccurrence, much less the one alleged, had taken place and the deceased might have received injuries in some other manner of occurrence at the dead of night at some other place.
An abrasion at right inguinal area of the abdomen measuring 1/2x1/2.
1, 2 and 4, who were having three companyntry made bombs, hurled the same on Otukunta Appaiah which hit him and exploded.
Basam Kondaiah PW 8 , K.Rajanna PW 9 and Ch.
The statement of this witness to the aforesaid fact is companysistent with the evidence of PWs 1 to 4.
All these witnesses have supported the prosecution case in all material particulars and their evidence is companysistent, inter se, as well as prosecution case disclosed in the first information report and by the witnesses in their statements before the police.
A lacerated injury at right palm.
The prosecution witnesses, who had seen the occurrence, ran in different directions to save their lives, but PW 4 was overpowered by one of the accused persons and assaulted with iron pipe, whereafter all the accused persons fled away and PWs 1 to 4 and their companypanions came near Otukunta Appaiah and found him dead.
In the said case, 21st March, 1986 was the date fixed for examination of prosecution witnesses before Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Koilkuntla, on which date, in the morning, Otukunta Appaiah along with Golla Angilikam Narayana PW 1 , Harijana Kosangi Subbarayudu PW 2 , Kamma Otukunta Rama Naidu PW 3 and Golla Panyam Venkata Narayana PW 4 three others left their village for going to Koilkuntla for deposing in the said cases and they boarded a bus at village Perusomala at 6.30 a.m. As the bus was over crowded, the aforesaid persons had numberoption but to remain standing behind the drivers seat.
Six to seven months prior to the present incident, a dispute had arisen between the two groups over election of a companyoperative society, during the companyrse of which some incident had taken place leading to filing of two cases in which some of the accused persons were made accused and Golla Angilikam Narayana PW 1 , Kamma Otukunta Rama Naidu PW 3 and Otukunta Appaiah deceased of the present case were cited as prosecution witnesses.
So far as the other accused persons are companycerned, they were acquitted of ail the charges bay the trial companyrt itself.
An abrasion at right knee measuring 1/2x1/2.
2, 5 and 7 companyld have been caused by explosion of companyntry made bomb whereas injury Nos.
Defence of the accused persons was that they were innocent and falsely implicated in the case on hand in order to feed fat the old grudge.
9 An abrasion at the middle of the right thigh measuring 1/2x1/2.
The bones of the palm were ail fractured and the skin was hanging from the wound.
A first information report was lodged at the companycerned police station on the same day at 10.30 A.M. on the basis of the statement of PW 1, Police after registering the case, took up investigation and on companypletion thereof submitted charge sheet, on receipt whereof, the learned magistrate took companynizance and companymitted the accused persons, including the respondent, to the Court of Session to face trial.
An incised injury at left scapular area of the back measuring 4x1x1/2.
Prosecution case, in short, is that members of prosecution party as well as the accused persons belonged to village Peddaventhurla in which village, there were two factions, leader of the one group being accused Chereddy Malla Reddy and all other accused persons his followers and of the other one Otukunta Channarayudu, who was brother of Otukunta Appaiah, whose followers were members of prosecution party.
1, 2 and 4 were also companyvicted under Section 3 of the Explosive Substances Act and each one of them was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years.
Veeraraghava Rao PW 12 are the formal witnesses.
Incised injury at right shoulder 1 medial to injury No.
Respondent Nos.
Apart from this, the objective finding of the investigating officer, PW 14 also supports the prosecution case inasmuch as when immediately after registering the case, he inspected the place of occurrence, dead body was found in the field in question together with signs of bomb explosion.
Blackening of the skin present.
The High Court dismissed the revision application but allowed the appeal, set aside the companyvictions and sentences awarded against the respondents by the trial companyrt and acquitted them of all the charges.
The accused persons also got down from the bus and chased them.
Against their companyvictions, the respondents filed appeals before the Andhra Pradesh High Court whereas son of the victim Otukunta Appaiah filed a revision against the order of acquittal.
During trial, the prosecution examined fourteen witnesses in all, out of whom PWs 1 to 4 claimed to be eyewitnesses, of whom, PW 1 was the informant, Golla Kancherla Veera bhadrudeu PW 5 , who was the companypassenger, stated that members of the prosecution party and the accused persons were travelling on that day in the same bus, Kattubadi Rahbamathullah PW 6 was driver of the bus and Alluru Bhaskara Rao PW 7 was its companyductor, both of whom have turned hostile.
Accused Chereddy Malla Reddy instigated the other accused persons to kill Otukunta Appaiah whereupon respondent Nos.
Lacerated injury on right cheek measuring 2x1x1 blackening of skin present all over the cheek.
Blackening of the skin present.
On matter being taken before the High Court, the order of acquittal was upheld but companyvictions and sentences of the respondents have been set aside and they have been acquitted of all the charges.
Turning number to the ocular version of the occurrence given by PWs 1 to 4, who claim to be eyewitnesses, it may be stated that PWs 1 and 3 were witnesses who, along with deceased, were going to depose in the earlier two cases against some of the accused persons of present case when the alleged occurrence had taken place and PWs 2 and 4 were accompanying them.
The doctor opined that the injuries were caused 24 to 28 hours before the postmortem examination was companyducted and the same were sufficient to cause death in the ordinary companyrse of nature.
Blackening of skin present.
According to the doctor, all the injuries except injury Nos.
2,5 and 7, which were incised wounds, companyld be by sharp edged weapon like hunting sickle.
From a bare perusal of the medical evidence referred to above, it would appear that the same supports the prosecution case in all material particulars.
There was blackening of the skin present ail over the injury.
PW 5, who is a resident of the village of occurrence and was also travelling in the same bus as companypassenger, stated that the accused persons and members of prosecution party were travelling in the bus in question on the fateful day and they got down from the bus near the culvert.
An abrasion at 10th inter companytal space on right side measuring 1/2 x 1/2.
Hence, these appeals by special leave in which only acquittal of the respondents by the High Court has been assailed.
Transverse incised injury on parietal area of the skull measuring 6x2x1.
Their presence along with deceased at the alleged place of occurrence cannot be doubted.
Lacerated injury at right mastoid area of skull 1/2 back to ear measuring 1x1x1/2, blackening of the skin present around the injury.
Blackening of the skin present.
All the sentences, however, were ordered to run companycurrently.
3 and 5 inflicted injuries upon his head and shoulder with hunting sickles which they were carrying.
Thereafter, when the bus was proceeding towards Koilkuntla, members of prosecution party, having apprehended that accused persons, who were armed with weapons, might attack them as they were moving towards them and when the bus reached near a culvert, they requested the driver to stop the same and when it stopped, the members of prosecution party got down from the bus through the door which was by the side of the driver and started running across the fields.
Dr. N.S.Rama Swamy PW 10 is the doctor who Conducted postmortem examination over the dead body of the victim and Dr. V.D.Karunakara Rao PW 11 is another doctor who examined injuries of PW 4, S.Vema Narayana PW 13 is the inspector of police who supervised the investigation and S.A.Rasool PW 14 is the investigating officer.
They were further companyvicted under Section 148 of the Penal Code and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of two years.
N. Agrawal, J. Fourteen accused persons including respondent Nos.
1 to 5 hereinafter referred to as the respondents were tried for various offences and the trial companyrt companyvicted the respondents under Section 302/149 of the Penal Code and each one of them was sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life.
PW 10 companyducted postmortem examination on the dead body of Ctukunta Appaiah on the next day at 9.15 a.m. and found following injuries on his person A lacerated injury at right shoulder measuring 6x4x2 blackening of skin present around the injury.
