The learned companynsel companytended that the appellants have been wrongly companyvicted as the evidence adduced by the prosecution was highly interested and that there was a free fight between two factions and the appellants have number companymitted any criminal offence.
Bihari Lal was carrying a gun with him and according to prosecution, accused Nawab snatched away that gun from Bihari Lal and thereafter all the accused started beating Bihari Lal.
Therefore, the presence of these witnesses at the place of occurrence cannot be suspected.
The companynsel for the appellants companytended that the doctor, who companyducted the post mortem examination deposed that there were numberincised injuries as stated earlier by another doctor who first examined the deceased Bihari Lal.
Bihari Lal fell unconscious.
The first appellant Majju alias Nasir hit deceased Bihari Lal with a Stick and the second appellant Irshad hit Bihari Lal with a Farsi on the head.
On the side of the prosecution, four eye witnesses, namely, Ganesh PW 1 Laxminarayan PW 2 Ramchandra PW 6 and Subhash PW 7 were examined.
It is important to numbere that the witnesses examined on the side of the prosecution were all injured in the incident.
But on 24.7.1987 at about 2.00 PM when deceased Bihari Lal and his brother Ramchandra along with their children were returning after performing some ceremony at the temple, the appellants and other accused, who were waiting for them on the way stopped Bihari Lal and others.
The accused who were companyvicted by the Sessions Court filed an appeal and the Division Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, Bench at Indore, acquitted six of the appellants and found guilty the present appellants for the offences under Section 302/34 IPC and they were sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life.
He opined that death was caused due to head injury.
Their acts were described even in the First Information Report and all the eye witnesses deposed that the appellants had caused the injuries to the deceased Bihari Lal.We heard the appellants learned companynsel, Mr. Niraj Sharma.
PW 13 took over the investigation and the dead body of the deceased was sent for post mortem examination.
Ramchandra, the brother of the deceased Bihari Lal also had sustained injuries.
All these witnesses gave evidence to the effect that when they along with deceased Bihari Lal were companying from the temple after performing some ceremony, the accused surrounded and attacked them.
It is true that there was an attack by a group of persons against the deceased and others accompanying him.
According to the prosecution, in the meanwhile, somebody had informed the police and pursuant thereto the police came to the place of occurrence and recorded the statement of Ganesh, son of Bihari Lal.
He was taken to Shajpur hospital but as his companydition was serious he was immediately removed to M.Y. Hospital, Indore, where, while undergoing treatment, he died.
PW 8, Dr. Vijay Agrawal, who companyducted the post mortem, stated that injuries 4 and 5 were number caused by a cutting weapon but by some blunt weapon.
In our opinion, it is number a serious mistake as there are four eye witnesses in this case who deposed that appellants Majju alias Nasir and Irshad were having Farsi with them and they inflicted cut injuries on Bihari Lal.
PW 8 Dr. Vijay Agrawal companyducted the post mortem and described the injuries in a hap hazard manner without proper description of the wounds as to whether these were incised injuries or lacerated injuries.
Briefly stated, the prosecution case is that on 20.7.1987 Ayyub Khan, the third accused before the Sessions Court, used some abusive words against Ganesh, son of deceased Bihari Lal, whereby Ganesh felt irritated and slapped Ayyub.
But the doctor who examined the injured immediately after the occurrence of the incident, described the nature of injuries and that is fully in companyformity with the oral evidence given by the witnesses.
PW 14, Dr. D.S. Mehta, examined the deceased and found that he had five incised wounds two on the head, one on the leg and two on arms, and these injuries were caused by a sharp cutting weapon.
The accused were carrying Farsi and Sticks.
People of the locality then persuaded the parties to companypromise the matter and there was numberfurther incident.
In view of some doubts regarding the companyplicity of some of the assailants, the Sessions Court as well as the High Court extended the benefit of doubt to those accused, but as regards the present appellants, there is strong and companysistent evidence to the effect that they had given the blows by Farsi to the deceased Bihari Lal.
That is proved by the various medical certificates issued by the doctor who examined them.
All these witnesses gave evidence of identical nature with minor companytradictions.
The learned Sessions Judge acquitted three of the accused and found others guilty of all the offences charged.
G. BALAKRISHNAN, J. The two appellants herein were tried by the Sessions Judge, Shajpur in Madhya Pradesh, along with nine others for the various offences punishable under Sections 302, 148, 323, 341 read with section 149 IPC.
The companynsel for the appellants companytended that the evidence adduced by the prosecution was interested and therefore, it cannot be relied upon.
