JUDGMENT

 Two brothers Govind Narain and Ganesh Narain, (appellants in Criminal Appeal No. 852/ 85, filed under S. 2 of the SC (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970) along with their third brother Ram Narain (respondent in Criminal Appeal Nos. 197/ 87 and 279/88) and father Kalu Ram, who died during the trial were tried for an offence under S. 302, I.P.C. in connection with an occurrence which is alleged to have taken place on the night intervening 23rd and 24th June, 1974 at about 1.00 a.m. According to the prosecution case, the deceased Gopi Chand was sleeping in his house when on hearing the barking of dogs, he got up and went out. While he was trying to look for the miscreants on account of whom the dogs might have barked, he was assaulted by all the four accused and pushed into a dry well. He cried for help and the villagers gathered there. Nanda PW 2 was sent into the well to bring out the deceased and after the deceased was so brought out, his brother Mohan Lal PW 17 and others made arrangement for the deceased to be removed to the hospital. PW 17 Mohan Lal claiming to be an eye-witness of the assault on the deceased by all the four accused persons and having witnessed the deceased being pushed into the well went to the Police Station and lodged F. I. R. at about 2.30 a.m. After registration of the case, the deceased was sent to Sanganer Medical Dispensary and after being provided with medical aid was rushed to hospital at Jaipur where he is alleged to have died at about 7. 10 a.m. on 24-6-74.

2. The prosecution with a view to connect the accused with the crime relied upon the following pieces of evidence:

(1) Statement of. eye-witness Mohan Lal, P. W. 17;

(2) three oral dying declarations;

(3) one dying declaration reduced into writing, exhibit P-3;

(4) medical evidence.

3. According to the prosecution case the motive for the assault was the existence of hostility between the deceased and the accused persons and litigation was pending between the parties. This enmity was sought to be proved from exhibit P-21 and exhibit P-22.

4. The trial court after analysis of the evidence on the record disbelieved the sole eye-witness Mohan Lal, P.W. 17. The trial court also disbelieved all the three dying declarations and the alleged dying declaration which had been reduced into writing, exhibit P-3. So far as the medical evidence is concerned, according to the trial court, it was of a neutral character in the sense that the doctor had not ruled out the possibility of all the injuries being caused to the deceased by a fall. Having disbelieved the sole eye-witness and the dying declarations, the trial court acquitted all the accused. Kalu Ram accused had, however, died during the pendency of the trial. Against the acquittal of the accused persons the State filed an appeal in the High Court. The High Court also disbelieved the sole eye-witness P.W. 17. The dying declaration allegedly reduced into writing exhibit P-3 was also not believed. After taking into account the three oral dying declarations, reliance was placed by the High Court on the testimony of P.W. 10 Narain, a witness to the second oral dying declaration, who had deposed that The deceased had named Govind Narain and Ganesh Narain as the persons who had pushed him into the well. The testimony of none of the other witnesses to the so-called dying declarations was accepted by the High Court and on a consideration of the matter, the High Court refused to interfere with the acquittal of Ram Narain and Kalu Ram, deceased. It, however, accepted the appeal of the State in so far as accused Govind Narain and Ganesh Narain are concerned. Both the appellants were convicted for the offence under Section 302, I.P.C. and sentenced to suffer the imprisonment for life. The State as well as the complainant had filed appeals, on special leave being granted, against the acquittal of Ram Narain and both Govind Narain and Ganesh Narain have filed an appeal against their convic