JUDGMENT :

Leave granted in SLP (Criminal) No.7902 of 2012.

2. The instant appeals have been filed against the final common judgment and order dated 29.07.2011 of the High Court of Jharkhand at Ranchi in a batch of three appeals (Criminal Appeal No. 669 of 2010, Criminal Appeal No. 905 of 2010 and Criminal Appeal No. 779 of 2010) and Death Reference No. 2 of 2010.

3. By the impugned judgment, the High Court dismissed the aforementioned appeals arising out of the judgment and order of conviction and sentence dated 1.07.2010 and 7.07.2010 of the Additional Sessions Judge, Dhanbad in Sessions Trial No. 88/200. The Sessions Court had convicted the three accused for offences punishable under Sections 364A, 302 and 201/34, IPC for kidnapping for ransom and murder of Sumit Kumar Ojha @ Govind, a 19 year old student, and causing disappearance of evidence (i.e. the body of the deceased).

Vide the judgment of the Sessions Court, the appellant Swapan Kumar Jha @ Sapan Kumar (hereinafter “appellant Swapan Kumar”), was sentenced to death, and the appellant Amarendra Kumar Sharma @ Vicky (hereinafter “appellant Vicky”) and the appellant Rocky Dutta herein (hereinafter “appellant Rocky”) were sentenc