Judgment

ROY, J.: This is an appeal by way of special leave from the judgment and order dated September 16, 1970, of the Pujab and Haryana High Court at Chadigrah.

2. In the early hours of the morning of August 2, 1969 a tragedy occurred in the abadi of Dholewal a suburb of Ludhiana town. Two persons. namely, Gulwant Singh and his siser s son Piara Singh, bow residents of the same village, were shot to death at the spot while Sadhu Singh (P. W. 3) a resident of Kot Sekhon received gunshot wounds. In consequence five persons were jointly tried by the Sessions Judge, Ludhiana, Shri M. L. Verma, for offences under Sections 302, 307, 326 and 324 read with S. 149 and under Ss. 147 and 148 of the Indian Penal Code. Three of them are brothers, namely, Sohan Singh, Mohan Singh and Bachittar Singh -all residents of village Dholewal. The fourth is Karnail Singh (alias Faqiria) another resident of that village who is stated to be a pagwat brother of Sohan Singh and the fifth is Labh Singh a resident of village Chak Sarai whose sister is the wife of Sohan Singh.

3. Before the Sessions Judge, Bachittar Singh was given the benefit of doubt and acquitted and the four co-accused were convicted and sentenced as follows:

Karnail Singh and Sohan Singh were sentenced to death. They were also given sentences for imprisonment for various periods.

Mohan Singh and Labh Singh were given life and other sentences.

Against the judgment of the learned Sessions Judge, two appeals were filed being Criminal Appeal No. 560 of 1970 by Karnail Singh convict and Criminal Appeal No. 586 of 1970 by the three other convicts.

4. The relationship between the accused and the deceased and the P. Ws. would appear from three tables which were given to us during the hearing.

* Dalip Singh s wife Gurdev Kaur was residing, at the time of the incident on August 1, 1969, with the deceased Gulwant Singh (Deceased No.I)

NOTE I- Appellant Karnail Singh is not related either to the family of the deceased or the P.Ws. or to the accused. He is said to be a friend of appellant Sohan Singh.

NOTE II- Appellant Labh Singh is the son of Gulwant Singh s (Deceased 1) wife s sister.

5. The prosecution case was shortly as follows:

Gulwant Singh and Piara Singh both residents of village Dholewal, were the joint owners of a truck. Sadhu Singh, Piara Singh s sister s husband was employed by them as the truck-driver. Labh Singh appellant is the wife s brother of Sohan Singh appellant. He used to pay visits to the latter and during those visits used to stay with Sohan Singh and his brothers, namely, Mohan Singh appellant and the said Bachittar Singh. The relationship between Labh Singh appellant and his brothers Dalip Singh on the one hand, and their brothers Ghuman and Sohana on the other, was strained.

6. The marriage of Shrimati Gurdevo with Dalip Singh was arranged by Gulwant Singh deceased. This was because Gulwant Singh was a common relation of both of them. Dalip Singh began to reside separately from his brothers, and Labh Singh, who was unmarried, developed illicit intimacy with Shrimati Gurdevo, to the displeasure of her father Ralla Singh. Ralla Singh took her to the house of Gulwant Singh deceased and left her there. Ghuman and Sohana also disapproved of the relations between Labh Singh appellant and Shrimati Gurdevo, and on July 31, 1969 came to the house of Gulwant Singh in Dholewal. Labh Singh appellant and his brother Dalip Singh also came to Dholewal and stayed in the house of Sohan Singh appellant. This led to the convening of a Panchayat on the morning of August 1, 1969 when it was decided that Sohan Singh appellant would turn out Labh Singh appellant and his brother Dalip Singh from his house, and Gulwant Singh deceased would expel Ghuman and Sohana from his house and that Shrimati Gurdevo, who was in a family way, would continue to stay with Gulwant Singh deceased till her confinement was over. Gulwant Singh deceased honoured the verdict of the Panchayat and sent away Ghuman and Sohana