Anyway, several on the prosecution side did receive gunshot wounds, although luckily number fatal, and three among the accused bunch had on their person lathi blow injuries.
The High Court agreed that unless the infirmity of interested testimony was cured by other credible evidence the fate of the case would be the same and on that basis dismissed the States appeal against all but the three appellants before us.
Appeal by special leave from the Judgment and Order dated the 21st September, 1970 of the, Allahabad High Court at Allahabad in Criminal Appeal No.
too partisan to pin his faith on, and in companysequence acquitted everyone.
The accused except a few who pleaded alibi in vain claimed that they were attacked.
Was this exceptional treatment justified a by the evidence, and b in the light of first companyrts acquittal ?
12 Lg4SuP. Cl/75 L. Kohli, for the appellant.
Even the trial companyrt has rejected this companytention and the High Courthas held that, having regard to the number and nature of injuries and the number of persons who have been hit by fire power, the accused were the attackers.
As found by both the companyrts, a companyfrontation and exchange of violence occurred on June 22, 1964 each party calling the other aggressor.
An encounter did take place and a case and companynter case ensued.
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION Criminal Appeal No.
40 of 1971.
944 of 1967.
Two groups the companyplainants and the accuseds have been on terms of bitter hostility a background material which has legitimately induced both the companyrts to be very sceptical about the veracity of the prosecution witnesses in the, absence of unlying companyroboration.
The few facts are these.
The trial Judge disbelieved the version of the defence but found the P.Ws.
P. Rana, for respondent No.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by KRISHNA IYER, J. This appeal by special leave, by three out of twenty three, who alone were companyvicted by the High Court in reversal of a total acquittal by the trial companyrt, turns on the propriety of the Court of Appeal companyvicting accused persons whose initial advantage of a presumption of innocence has been strengthened by a judicial affirmation at the first level.
