The learned Judges of the High Court have held companytrary to the story narrated at the trial by the eye witnesses, that the Sole and Jei found as the spot had been used by the appellants in inflict injuries on the deceased, and in the process, they seem to have to used the F.I.R. as if it were a substantive piece of evidence.
The deceased persons used to reside in a dhani farm hut, situated in the disputed land, to supervise its cultivation, as the land is situated at a far offdistance from the habitation of the village.
On March 5, 1975, Sheodan Singh deceased made a petition Ex.
It was manifest that these two accused were reluctant to get their injuries examined because of the fear that it was an incriminating circumstance indicating their participation in the crime.
Jai, sale blade, lathi, sword, kukeri were used by persons other than the appellants.
The Tehasildar P. W. 17 was appointed the Receiver in respect of the attached property.
There is numberevidence that thereafter, the appellants were ever evicted from the Dhani and the field.
P. 6 at Police Station Vijay Nagar alleging that the appellants before us alongwith other persons, came armed and threatened that the informanent and his man should leave the Dhani and the field otherwise they would kill them.
In companynection with this plea of private defence, the undisputed facts and circumstances set out below raise in inference that in all probability, the appellants were in actual possession of the land in dispute from January 21, 1975 upto the time of occurrence on March 8, 1975 Ridmal deceased made a report Ex.
It was numberbodys case that the accused used more than one weapon in assaulting the deceased.
But after hearing fully the Counsel on both sides and taking into companysideration all the circumstances of the case, we have reached the companyclusion that the death sentence of each of the appellant should be companymuted to imprisonment for life.
There is numberevidence that the deceased also companystructed their labour implements or capital in meeting the companyt of cultivation.
Banta Singh and Hajura Singh.
No evidence has been brought on the record to show that these weapons belonged to the accused or had been used by them in assaulting the deceased persons.
It was the prosecution case, itself, that on March 9, 1975 when the deceased persons followed by Banta Singh and Hajura Singh, reached the disputed field to share the Gowar crop, the appellants were already there and started the assault.
The understanding between the deceased and the cultivators was that the letter would give half the produce to the former.
Some of these circumstances, among others, may briefly be indicated Background of the Case One Smt.
It is also mentioned in that report that the appellant then forcibly occupied the Dhani and drove away under pain of death, Banta Singh and Hajura Singh, the cultivators of the informant from the field.
Consistently with the same story, the investigating police officer had recovered one lathi from each of the three accused.
d on post mortem examination, Alcohol was found in the stomachs of the deceased persons Ridmal Singh, Sheodan Singh and Jaten Singh .
The deceased attacked Prem Singh and Ugam Singh who, in self defence, wielded their lathis and caused injuries to the deceased.
This shows the deceased persons had companye to the spot after having pruned themselves with liquor.
On the companytrary, at the trial, the eyewitness Banta Singh, Hajura Singh and Amar Singh categorically stated that the accused had belaboured the deceased persons with lathis only.
P. 50 under Section 145 Cr.
The injuries were simple and were caused with a blunt object.
She died in 1972.
Bhanwari Bai, an issueless widow, was an allottee of two Murabhao of land, bearing survey Nos.
The High Court was clearly in error in making out or reconstructing a new case, which was number set up by the prosecution at the trial.
Since it was the positive case of the prosecution at the trial, that the accused had belaboured the deceased, only with la this, and number with any of the blunt and sharp weapons found at the scene of occurrence, the only reasonable inference is that these weapons viz.,
At first flush, on seeing only the number of persons who lost their lives at the hands of the appellants, our instinctive reaction was to reject summarily at the threshould, all arguments sought to be advanced for companymutation of the death sentence awarded to the appellants.
In the opinion of the medical witness, these injuries were 6 to 8 days old at the time of their examination.
PC in the Court of Sub Divisional Magistrate, Raisingh Nagar against the appellants, alleging a dispute between the parties over possession of the land, likely to result in a breach of the peace.
The medical witness who had examined the accused appellants on 16 3 1975, found three injuries on Ugam Singh and seven on Prem Singh.
Thereupon, a dispute arose about the cultivation and possession of that land.
Panta Singh and Hajura Singh.
Sabal Singh, appellant claimed that he was the nearest heir of Bhanwari Bai deceased, who was residing with him at the time of her death.
This mean that Banta Singh and ajura Singh, were in actual cultivating possession in the statute of tenants.
Even after their arrest, the accused were examined by the Doctor at the instance of the police.
Sheodhan Singh, Ridmal Singh and Jatan Singh deceased laid a rival claim to that land inter alia on the ground that they were in possession of that land even during the lifetime of the widow, and were getting it cultivated on share basis through P. Ws.
The case sought to be made put by the defence, was that the appellants were in established possession of the disputed land since January 21, 1975, to the exclusion of the deceased persons that on March 8, 1975, the deceased persons along with others, came drunk and fully armed to the filed to evict the appellants and carry away the crop by force.
The appellants had also received injuries.
The Magistrate thereafter, in those proceedings passed an order to attach the land and crop thereon.
Sabel Singhs plea was that as he was number present at the time of and place of occurrence and that he learnt it from his sons later, and then lodged unsuccessfully attempted to a companynter F.I.R. on the basis of this derivative information, with the police.
32 and 33, in Chak No.
So far as the blunt weapons Jei and lathis which were found at the spot are companycerned, the greater possibility is that they were used by the deceased persons in inflicting injuries on Prem Singh and Ugarn Singh, appellants because all the injuries on the latter were caused with blunt weapons.
In companysequence of this report a case under Section 447, 448, 504 read with Section 148 was registered against the appellants and others.
The High Court has discounted this companyclusion mainly on the ground that the accused did number gel their injuries examined soon after the occurrence.
The lathis said to have been recovered from Prem Singh and Ugam Singh were found stained with blood but number the one recovered from Sabal Singh.
Such attachment was done on March 8, 1975, i.e. on the day proceeding the occurrence.
This means, they companyld have been received by the accused in the companyrse of the occurrence on the 9th March, 1975.
The prosecution case was that Ridmal Singh and Sheodan Singh deceased used to get the disputed land cultivated on share basis through P. Ws.
Sabal Singh, appellant who have his age as 65 70 years is the father, and the other two appellants, Ugam Singh and Prem Singh are his sons.
S. Sarkaria, J. Special Leave to appeal limited to the question of sentence has been granted to the three appellants who have been companyvicted for the murders of four persons and sentenced to death.
They came with a determination to stay and did stay, and companytinue in effective phycisal possession of the disputed land with crops thereon till the occurrence on March 8, 1975.
But in the Khasra Girdawari entries P. 1 and and P. 2 relating to the relevant period, Banta Singh or Hajura Singh are number shown in possession of the land in any capcity, whatever The above circumstances clearly show that forcible occupation of Dhani and the land by the appellants companyld number be viewed as the learned judges of the High Court have done a single or sporadic act of trespass by the accused.
The plea of the appellants at the trial was one of private defence of property and person.
Indeed, P.W. 8, Banta Singh candidly admitted that after January 1, 1975 till the occurrence the deceased Sheodan Singh never came to the Dhani i.e. the field.
There is numberevidence that in pursuance of the Magistrates order, the Receiver evicted the appellants from the Dhani and the field or he appointed any of the deceased or the accused or anybody else as his manager, or sapurdder of the cryling or standing in the field.
The circumstances mentioned below establish by inference a strong possibility verging on probability about the existence of the fact that the deceased persons went in a body to the field, armed and printed with liquer, with a determination to remove the Gowar crop by force from the possession and companytrol of the accused The investigating officer found on the scene of occurrence, near the dead bodies, several weapons, namely, Jei Article 6 , as a Sale Blade Article 6 a lathi, one kukari and one sword.
