The other two appellants were held guilty under Section 302/34 and each of them was awarded a sentence of life imprisonment and a fine of Rupees 2,000/ for the murder of Chhota Puri.
The matter came up before the High Court of Punjab and Haryana in reference for companyfirmation of the death sentence of appellant Dali1p Gir and in appeal filed by the three appellants.
He prepared the recovery memos of the firearms and the cartridges.
Appellants Nachhettar Singh, Dalip Gir and Balwant Gir, according to the prosecution case, came from the side of village Seth raising Lalkaras.
The Additional Sessions Judge is number right when he said that the appellants did number challenge the manner of their arrest.
Their mother is Jangir Kaur, P.W. 6.
There were many enemies of the victims in the village and it is number known who killed them and in what manner.
The recovery memos of the rifle guns and the cartridges are Exts.
PT and PU.
Appellant Nachhattar Singh was charged under Section 302 for killing Labh Puri, Nachhattar and Dalip for the murder of Chhota, and Balwant for killing Paras.
This clearly indicated that the gun was fired from a distance of few inches may be at the most a foot.
Only one was the wound of entry being injury No.
Recording was done later after Sub Inspector Prem Singh had arrived at the scene of occurrence at about 8.30 in the morning on receipt of some information.
PN is the recovery memo showing recovery of two empty cartridges of 8 mm and 4 empty cartridges of 12 bore from the Court yard of Balwant Gir.
It caused two wounds of exit being injuries 2 and 3.
Balwant caught hold of the gun of Dalip, fired at Paras and caused his death.
None of them was examined and numberexplanation was given by the prosecution for their number examination.
It is said that Nachhattar fired his rifle at Chhota and Dalip fired two shots on him with his gun.
Paras and Chhota slipped out of their house and started running towards the house of Fateh Din, Sarpanch, P.W. 8.
Sub Inspector Prem Singh, went to the field and claimed to have arrested the three appellants in, the field which was at a distance of about 250 yards from the Basti.
No Kaka Singh was examined No Zora Singh was examined.
The prosecution story of two shots having been fired by Dalip at Chhota stands discredited by the nature of the injuries found on his person.
The recovery witnesses on these memos are Fateh Din, P.W. 8 and one Teza Singh, Panch.
The prosecution story further runs thus.
Jangir Kaur followed them.
PN/2, PN/3, PN/4, PU, PO Z and PQ in respect of the blood stained earth the respectable witnesses as stated in the memos themselves were Kaka Singh, s o Harnam Singh and Zora Singh.
During investigation it transpired that the three appellants and six more persons had entered into a criminal companyspiracy to companymit the murder of the Puris with whom they had several litigations, quarrels and inimical factions.
The significance of all these criticisms will be tell tale when we companye to deal with the main story of occurrence.
In the house adja cent to that of Gidho Puri were living Paras Puri and Chhota Puri the other two persons killed in the occurrence.
The part played by P.Ws.
Out of the several recovery memos prepared at the place of occurrence we shall specifically deal with the recovery memos of the empty cartridges.
The appellants carried the dead body of Choota to the Court yard of Balwant.
From there the appellants took Paras alive to the Courtyard of Balwant.
They are nephews of Gidho Puri.
Niamat, P.W. 7 is the mother of Nikka Kumhar.
No independent witness has been examined in the case.
Mo rifle injury on him.
The appellants filed this appeal in this Court by special leave.
It companyld number be known that from which gun the other 4 empty cartridges had been fired.
Chowkidar purports to be a witness.
PO/1 shows the recovery of two empty cartridges of 12 bore in the lane at the Chow near the house of Gidho Puri.
Nachhattar was arrested with his licenced rifle and 20 cartridges, Dalip with his licenced double barrel gun and four cartridges and Balwant with a double barrel gun and six cartridges.
Similar was the claim of appellant Dalip Gir.
The High Court maintained their companyvictions and sentences.
Nachhettar Singh had a rifle, Dalip a gun and Balwant Gir was armed with a gandasa.
In the Court yard of Balwant Gir, Nachhattar Singh is said to have fired his rifle at Labh Puri and caused his death.
But Dalip kept ,her away by giving her blows with the butt end of his gun.
were fired from the rifle of Nachhattar Singh and out of the 8 empty cartridges of 12 bore 3 were found to have been fired from the right barrel and one from the left barrel of Dalips gun.
There he took various steps in the process of investigation of the case, such as, preparing of Inquest Reports, Seizure list of the recovery of the empty cartridges, wads, blood stained earth etc.
Surely they were number fired from Dalips gun.
The prosecution case, stated above in brief is the one as told by the four eye witnesses in companyrt, namely, Gidho Puri, P.W. 4, Guridal Kaur, P.W. 5, Jangir Kaur, P.W. 6 and Niamat, P.W. 7, The story told by Gidho Puri in the First Information Report is substantially the same with this difference that in the Report Ext PM Dalip Gir is said to have fired shot in the lane which hit upon the back of Paras Puri.
From the companyrt yard of Nikka Kumhar is said to have been recovered under memo Ext.
When he had companypleted the recording of statements of the witnesses at about 5.40 p.m. he received information that the appellants were hiding themselves in a field nearby wherein was standing the crop of Gowara.
That all the four eye witnesses to the occurrence are highly interested persons and their evidence is number worthy of credence at all.
The delay was of five weeks.
The Trial Court companymitted an error in saying that they were sent to the Expert within a week.
The appellants then fired more shots and left the place.
Gidho Puri went to Police Station which was at a distance of 10 miles from village Bapla and lodged the First Information Report at 11.00 A.M. It was recorded by the Station House Officer Prem Singh, Sub Inspector P.W. 15.
The evidence, further, was that Dalip fired two shots at him with his gun.
Jangir Kaur followed them entreating the appellants to spare Paras.
The 4th injury in the opinion of the Doctor companyld have been caused by a stray flying pellet.
Appellant Nachhattar Singh clearly stated that he was taken away from his house shortly after 2.00 p.m. along with his licenced rifle, gun and live cartridges.
Suffice it at this stage to say that according to the opinion of the Ballistic Expert L.A. Kumar, P.W. 16 the three empty cartridges of 8 mm.
The six accused who were charged only under Section 120B of the Penal Code were acquitted.
5 and 6 and the causing of injuries to them is number found to be in the F.I.R. Station House Officer Prem Singh after recording the F.I.R. left for the place of occurrence and reached there at about 1.00 p.m. on the 18th Sept. 1972.
On some is written Kaka Singh, S o Harnam Singh and on others Kaka Singh.
PR one empty cartridge of 8 mm and two cartridges of 12 bore.
They were received by him on the 25th.
The evidence of Fateh Din does number aspire companyfidence and Teza Singh has number been examined.
and numbering down the statements of the witnesses.
One shot was fired from a close range and the other companyld number have been just a flying pellet causing injury No.
For tike murder of Labh Puri and Paras Puri, the trial Court companyld number fasten the guilt under Section 302 on any of the appellants and companyvicted all of them with the aid of Section 34.
Not a word was said by way of an explanation for the delay.
That the empty cartridges and the fire arms were sent to the Ballistic Expert after an undue and unexplained delay of 5 weeks.
From the evidence of the Expert, it appears that they were number fired from the gun which is said to have been recovered from the possession of appellant Balwant Gir.
Jangir Kaur tried to intervene.
1 showing a charred margin 11/2 x 11/2 in the left anterior axillary fold.
The three appellants pursued them.
Paras entered the house of Fateh Din while Chhota entered the house of one Nikka Kumhar.
On the person of Choota Puri were found 4 gun shot injuries.
In any event the immediate cause of occurrence was number known.
They caught hold of Labh Puri, dragged him out of his house and took him to the Court yard of Balwant Gir across the lane, Gurdial Kaur tried to save him but Nachhattar Singh gave her a blow with the butt end of his rifle on her right shoulder.
The appellants entered the room of Nikka.
On these memos Zora Singh is one of the witnesses.
Then they came to the house of Fateh Din where Niamet, P.W. 7 was present.
In substance the appellants were also charged of having companymitted the murder of three victims, in furtherance of their companymon intention to do so.
Chhota died on the spot.
The Additional Sessions Judge, Barnala who tried the case disbelieved the evidence of Fateh Din, P.W. 8 on the point of Criminal companyspiracy and held that the said charge was number proved against any of the accused.
Charge sheet was submitted against all the nine accused and they were put on trial in the Sessions Court for the charge of having entered into a criminal companyspiracy of companymitting murders of the Puris.
The occurrence is said to have taken place at about 7.30 A.M. Gidho Puri, P.W. 4, his wife Gurdial Kaur, P.W. 5 and their son Labh Puri one of the victims were present in their house.
That the first information Report was number lodged at the Police Station at the time it was said to have been recorded.
L. Untwalia, J. In village Bapla, Police Station Mehal Kalan, District Sangrur a very serious occurrence took place on the 18th September, 1972 in which three persons were killed by fire arms.
