Kuri wanted to give the lands to her daughters children children of PW 7 , accused Nos.
Appellants 3 and 6 accused Nos.
The prosecution relied on the evidence of P. Ws.
These persons, though mentioned in the charge sheet as having witnessed the occurrence, were number examined by the prosecution.
These aspects have number been taken into account by the High Court in companysidering the credibility of the witnesses, who deposed against the appellants.
Prima facie it may appear that the companyviction of the appellants is in companysequence of more or less companycurrent findings arrived at by both the learned Sessions Judge and the High Court.
The first information report was given by PW 1 who was working in the adjoining field and had seen the occurrence.
Indian Penal Code and all the other accused were charged for an offence under Section 147, Indian Penal Code.
In or about 1958 there was a marpit between some of the accused of this group and their friends on the one hand and Kartar Singh alias Kartara, the deceased, his brother, Aman Singh and their friends on the other.
But the report, Ext.
The accused belonging to both these groups became friendly with each other because of the companymon enmity against the deceased and accordingly joined together and assaulted Kartar Singh at about 12 Noon on September 14, 1965, when the latter was working in his fields, and inflicted very serious injuries which resulted in his instantaneous death.
The plea of possession of the land by the deceased is bogus and is a make believe affair.
Ka 8, filed by the first accused earlier in the day before the police regarding a quarrel between him and the deceased can be taken into account as it provided the immediate provocation for the murderous attack made by the accused of the 1st group on Kartar Singh later in the day.
The prosecution case throughout was that PW 1 caused the injury during the occurrence to the first accused.
In the said marpit, accused 2 and 3 received injuries which resulted in cases being registered against both par ties tinder Sections 147 and 323, I.P.C. Ultimately the cases were registered as having been companypromised.
It is to be numbered particularly that some of the witnesses examined on the side of group II specially implicated the present appellants as having companymitted the crime.
The first accused was also asked to explain that evidence.
Accused Nos.
The matter mentioned in Ext.
1, 2, 4 and 5 accused Nos.
But as the evidence given by P. Ws.
8, 9 and 10 were stated to have been armed with spears and as such they were charged with an offence under Section 148.
Though the case of the prosecution was that the first accused sustained certain injuries during the occurrence at the hands of P.W. I, nevertheless that case has number been proved by the prosecution.
1 to 3 have a motive to falsely implicate the accused of the 2nd group and, therefore, their evidence regarding the participation of those accused is false and has to be rejected.
5 to 7 and 10, were tried by the learned Sessions Judge for offences under Section 302 read with Sections 149, 147 and 148 of the Indian Penal Code.
1 and 2 in their statement to the police had named all the ten accused as having assaulted the deceased.
They further pleaded that P.W. 7, who wanted the property to be given to his wife by Smt.
1 to the police about a previous incident on the same day, was denied by him.
Kuri, was very much disappointed and he along with one Aman Singh and the deceased, who claimed to be in possession, were creating companysiderable trouble to them.
The accused of the 1st group pleaded ignorance about the whole incident.
1 to 4 have been companyvicted under Section 147, I.P.C. and each of them has been sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for one year.
PW 7 had desired that the lands of his mother in law should be given to his wife.
Accused Nos.
The prosecution had let in numberevidence as to why the accused belonging to the groups should join together for companymitting the murder.
Even though the circumstances under which the appellant received the injury have number been established or proved by the evidence let in by the prosecution, the State can rely upon the facts referred to in Ext.
The lands were being cultivated by the deceased, Kartar Singh, for about ten or eleven years.
One of the attesting witnesses to this document was accused No.
The High Court has companyfirmed the companyviction of the appellants.
Appellants Nos.
In view of the stand taken by the prosecution in this case, numbersupport or reliance should have been placed by the companyrts on Ext.
All the sentences have been directed to run companycurrently.
The learned Sessions Judge recorded the following findings.
All the appellants have been companyvicted under Section 302 read with Section 149, I.P.C. and sentenced to imprisonment for life.
This accused further denied having any friendship or association with the accused belonging to the 2nd group.
The accused belonging to group II pleaded that they had legally obtained the sale deed of the lands in question from Smt.
There is great discrepancy between the time and the scene of occurrence and regarding certain other matters in the said report.
The wife of PW 7 was her only daughter.
This led to a series of criminal companyplaints and civil litigation, each one alleging that the other was companymitting criminal acts against them.
The case of the prosecution, it will be seen, was that the appellants as well as the acquitted accused formed an unlawful assembly with the companymon object of companymitting the murder of Kartar Singh and did companymit his murder by attacking him and inflicting serious injuries which proved fatal.
10 belonging to this group.
The first information re port and the evidence let in before the Court was also to the same effect.
That the prosecution does number accept those statements, is clear by the evidence of P. Ws.
The prosecution case in brief was as follows The accused belonging to group I are very closely related and are descendants of a companymon ancestor belonging to the same family.
The 2nd group wanted to get possession of the properties, which attempt was very strenuously resisted by the deceased, Kartar Singh, supported by PW 7 and certain others.
But in their evidence be fore the companyrt they had stated that only the six accused belonging to group I assaulted the deceased with dangerous weapons and caused his death.
1, 4 and 10 as having witnessed the occurrence.
Kuri on paying a companysideration of Rupees 14,000/ and that the said transaction was a genuine and honest transaction.
Though Shmt.
Both the learned Sessions Judge and the High Court have very profusely relied on Ext.
Though the first information report purports to have been given by P.W. I, the companytents of the same have really been furnished by P.W. 7 and his friend, Aman Singh, who were bitterly opposed to the 2nd group of accused, and P.W. I was only a figurehead.
But they pleaded ignorance of the occurrence which resulted in the death of Kartar Singh.
Notwithstanding this circumstance, their evidence regarding the present appellants companyld be believed.
Though they admitted the marpit of the year 1958, they stated that after the companypromise entered into between them and the party of the deceased in that year there had been numbercause for grievance or enmity between them.
The explanation given by them for naming all the ten accused before the police was that the sub inspector threatened to beat them if the accused belonging to the 2nd group were number implicated.
For purposes of companyvenience the appellants before us will be designated as group I. and the acquitted accused will be designated as group II.
The motive pleaded by the prosecution for the present appellants attacking the deceased was the marpit of 1958.
The learned Sessions Judge examined Shitabi and Ram Prasad as companyrt witnesses 1 and 2 respectively.
They also accepted as true the various litigations and criminal companyplaints that were pending in the companyrts regarding this land to which they were parties.
The companyviction of the appellants is, therefore, supported by the evidence.
Investigation followed and all the accused were apprehended and put up for trial.
Ka 8 by the first accused can be taken into account, as that furnishes the motive for the appellants attacking the deceased.
5 to 7 and 10 were acquitted by the learned Sessions Judge and there was numberappeal by the State challenging their acquittal.
8 and 9 have been companyvicted under Section 148, I.P.C. and each of them has been sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for 18 months.
The six appellants along with four others, who were accused Nos.
The dispute related to the breaking of a mend.
In view of this bitter enmity, the accused belonging to group II had a strong motive to put an end to Kartar Singh, who was obstructing possession being taken by them.
The accused belonging to the different groups also examined some witnesses on their side.
Ka 8, stated to have been made by the first appellant accused No.
Notwithstanding this companypromise the relationship between the accused belonging to group I and the deceased were number companydial.
1 to 3 which can be accepted against the present appellants.
The 2nd group had numbermotive to companymit the murder as they were in possession of the properties by virtue of the purchase from Smt.
But nevertheless their evidence can be accepted so far as the accused in the first group are companycerned.
Even eliminating the evidence of these two witnesses, there is evidence of P. Ws.
P. Ws.
The report, Ext.
Court witnesses Nos.
The accused of the 1st group attacked Kartar Singh with spears and lathis and caused injuries which resulted in his death and, therefore, they are guilty of the offence with which they were charged.
1 to 3 against the accused of the 1st group.
Further, this was number even a case where the prosecution was trying to find support from the statements companytained in Ext.
Ka 8 and they have companye to the companyclusion that the incident mentioned therein by the first accused himself had provided the immediate provocation for the deadly assault on Kartar Singh by the accused on group I. In our opinion, both the Courts were totally unjustified in relying upon Ext.
1 to 3 regarding the participation of the four accused belonging to group II is false, their evidence will have to be rejected and in companysequence those accused were entitled to acquittal.
A. Vaidialingam, J. This appeal by special leave, by accused Nos.
1 to 4, 8 and 9, is against the judgment and order dated 13 1 1969 of the High Court of Allahabad companyfirming the companyviction and the sentences imposed on them by the Second Additional Sessions Judge, Meerut.
1 to 3 and also of P.W. 6.
These witnesses have gone behind their statements given to the police in which they had implicated all the ten accused.
The reasoning of the High Court is briefly as follows The evidence of the companyrt witnesses 1 and 2 is false and numberreliance can be placed on their evidence even so far as the accused of the 1st group were companycerned.
5, 6 and 7 belonging to the 2nd group fraudulently got a sale deed executed in their favour of the lands in question on December 14, 1964.
