Judgement

BHAGWATI, J.:- The appellants and one Tulsi Das were charged for offences under Sections 309 and 201 read with Section 149 of the Indian Penal Code, The appellants were also charged for offence under Section 148 and Tulsi Das for offence under Section 147. The Sessions Judges, Hamirpur acquitted the appellants and Tulsi Das of all the offences charged against them. The State preferred an appeal against the order of acquittal and the High Court partly allowed the appeal so far as the appellants were concerned and, setting aside the order of acquittal, convicted the appellants of offences under Section 302 read with Section 149 as will as Section 148 and sentenced each of them to suffer life imprisonment for the offence under Section 302 read with Section 149 and two years rigorous imprisonment for the offence under Section 148 with a direction that both sentences should run conenrrently. The acquittal of the appellants for offence under Section 201 read with Section 149 was confirmed by the High Court and so also was the acquittal of Tulsi Das in respect of the charges preferred against him. Since the acquittal of the appellants in respect of offences under Section 302 rea