Against their companyvictions and sentences A1 to A4 filed one appeal and A5 to A10 another.
By a companymon judgment the High Court dismissed their appeals and aggrieved thereby they have preferred these appeals after obtaining special leave.
Karmit Singh then went to the Civil Hospital, Ludhiana and recorded the statement of injured Swaran Singh Ext.
The first part of the occurrence came to an end with the causing of the injuries on the person of Swaran Singh.
The High Court then discussed the individual roles of the appellants in the first and second part of the incident and upheld their companyvictions as recorded by the trial Court.
The police party then went to Police Station, Division No.
Malkiat Singh gave two gandasa blows on the person of Swaran Singh while Karam Chand gave three dange blows on the person of Swaran Singh.
The hue and cry attracted some villagers and then the accused disappeared from the spot carrying their respective weapons.
A1 next stated that thereafter when the companyplainant party trespassed into the house of A3 and his sons and caused multiple injuries to six members of their family, one of them, namely, Nachhatar Singh A7 caused injuries on some of the members of the companyplainant party.
Surti alias Surat Singh was the accused who brought Charan Singh from his house and Boota Singh gave the gandasa blow which proved fatal.
There he seized some blood soaked earth and prepared a visual plan of the spot Ext.
As they neared the neighboring shop of Lachhman Dass there was an alarm, whereupon Swaran Singh accompanied by his nephews Harjit Singh P.W.7 and Harnek Singh P.W.8 two sons of Charan Singh rushed there.
On seeing such assault on their father and uncle, Harjit Singh and Harnek Singh rushed to their house and came back armed with dangs followed by other members of their family including Ms. Amarjit Kaur, wife of Charan Singh.
To answer this question both the learned Courts below detailed and discussed the entire evidence and companycurring with the findings of the trial Court in this regard the High Court made the following observations Thus, from the evidence available on the record, we have numberdoubt that the first part of the occurrence took place in front of the shop of Lachhman Dass and, at that time, only Boota Singh A1 , Malkiat Singh A2 , Karam Chand A4 and Surat A3 appellants, were present.
Some members of the party of A1 also sustained injuries at the hands of the two sons of Charan Singh when they snatched away some arms from the accused persons and beat them in self defence.
Accompanied by A3 Charan Singh then proceeded towards the formers house.
On receipt of a telephonic message from the police guard posted at the C.M.C. Hospital, Ludhiana, Assistant Sub Inspector Karmit Singh of Police Station Sadar, Ludhiana P.W. 10 along with some police officials went to M.C. Hospital, Ludhiana, where the Medical Officer opined the Charan Singh was number fit to make a statement.
2, Ludhiana and companylected the medico legal examination reports of all the other injured which had in the meantime been sent there by the Civil Hospital.
P.C., was that in the night preceding the date of the incident a calf of A1 had fallen in the outlet of the Bio Gas plant of the companyplainant party and over that issue there was an exchange of abuses between A3 and the companyplainant party.
Simultaneously, the other accused persons arrived at the scene armed with gandasas, dangs and kirpans and started assaulting the members of Charan Singhs family.
A little later A3, who lived nearby, came there and asked Charan Singh to accompany him to his house as he wanted to discuss some urgent matters with him.
Evidently, in a case of free fight, the provisions of Sections 148 and 149, Indian Penal Code, cannot be invoked and each accused shall have to be dealt with individually and shall be individually liable for the injuries caused by him.
To that the companyplainant party retorted that the Harijans the accused party had numberright to abuse them.
When Swaran Singh went to his rescue A2 hit him Swaran Singh with another gandasa and A4 with a lathi.
Bereft of details the prosecution case is as follows On August 3, 1988 at or about 6 M. Swaran Singh P.W.6 , a resident of village Jainpur, called on his brother Charan Singh the deceased , who used to live in the adjoining house.
A3 then gave out that he was going to inform the police about the misbehavior of the companyplainant party.
On that score the accused party nursed a grievance against Charan Singh.
He prepared the inquest report regarding the death of Charan Singh and sent the dead body for Post mortem examination.
In their presence A1, who was armed with a gandasa, gave a blow with it on the head of Charan Singh as a result of which he fell down.
All the injured were removed to the Civil Hospital, Ludhiana for treatment where from Charan Singh, who was found in a precarious companydition, was immediately referred to C.M.C. Hospital, Ludhiana.
The following day the date of the incident the deceased and members of his family including Swaran Singh, Harinder Singh, Ajit Singh, Harjit Singh and Hari Singh went to the house of A3 armed with deadly weapons and asked him to companye out.
Thereafter, the nephews of Swaran Singh and other members of the family came rushing from their house and the nephews of Swaran Singh were armed and the remaining members of the accused party including Surat Singh came armed from their house and there was a free fight between the parties in the Chowk.
The appellants pleaded number guilty to the charges levelled against them and their version of the incident, as given out by A1 in his statement recorded under Section 313 Cr.
When this matter was reported by Charan Singh to the police the accused party levelled allegation that Sewa Singh was hanged.
When he A1 came out and protested he was attacked by the companyplainant party with the weapons they were carrying as a result of which he sustained severe injuries on his person.
While at the spot he got information about the death of Charan Singh and hence went to M.C. Hospital.
He sent the statement to the police station for registering a case thereupon and accompanied by some police officials went to the scene of occurrence.
The trial ended in companyviction and sentence of A1 under Sections 302, 324/34 and 323/34 CPC, A2 to A4 under Sections 302/34, 324/34 and 323/34 IPC, A5 to A8 under Section 324 CPC, A9 under Sections 326 and 323 CPC and A10 under Sections 326 IPC.
K. MUKHERJEE, J. The ten appellants before us, hereinafter referred to as A1 to A10 respectively were tried by the Additional Sessions Judge, Ludhiana for criminal companyspiracy, rioting, murder and other related offences.
