JUDGMENT

 Heard learned counsel.

2. This is an appeal under Section 379, Cr.P.C. read with Section 2 of SC (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act. The appellant - sole accused in this case was tried for offence punishable under Section 302, Indian Penal Code for causing the murder of Vashram Mughji - the deceased in the case. The prosecution relied on the three eye-witnesses PWs 2, 3 and 10. The trial court pointing out some discrepancies in their evidence acquitted the appellant. The State preferred an appeal and the High Court having examined the evidence of each of the witnesses came to the conclusion that the reasons given by the trial court are wholly unsound for rejecting their evidence and accordingly allowed the appeal and convicted the appellant. The prosecution case is as follows: -

The material witnesses - the deceased and the accused belong to village Nani Parabdi near Rajkot. There was an enmity between the accused and the members of the family of the deceased and the dispute was about a land that started 10 years back. Father of the accused filed a case against the deceased and his family members. The agricultural lands of the accused were adjacent to the land of the deceased and several cases were filed because of that dispute. On the day of occurrence, i.e. on 17-9-1979, at about 6-00 a.m., the deceased was returning after answering the call of nature. PW-2 the nephew and PW-10 the son of the deceased were sleeping in the upstair room. PW-3 brother of the deceased lives in the same house in the ground floor. They heard the alarming cries of the deceased and they opened the windows and the door and saw the accused stabbing the deceased with a knife. They came out of the house by then and they found the injured body lying in one Bavanjis house. They saw the accused running away. They immediately asked him as to what has happened. He said that Ramku has stabbed him. Then they took the injured to the hospital but he was declared dead. Immediately after that PW- 10 went and gave a report to the Police Sub-Inspector at about 9.30 a.m. and the same was sent to the Magistrate on the same day. The accused was also arrested at 3.30 p.m. and the knife was recovered. The doctor, who conducted the post mortem, found nearly nine incised wounds all over the body and on internal examination he found the vital organs injured and he opined that death was due to profuse intra theracis haemorrhage and shock due to injury to the lungs and liver. That injury is sufficient in the ordinary course of nature for causing death. After completion of the investigation the charge-sheet was laid. The prosecution examined twelve witnesses in all. Out of them PWs 2, 3 and 10 figured as eyewitnesses. The trial court pointing out certain discrepancies rejected the same. We have examined the reasons given by the trial court and we are inclined to agree with the High Court that the said reasonings are wholly unsound. Since this is a regular appeal, we would proceed to examine the evidence of the three eye-witnesses. First, we will take up the evidence of PW 10 son of the deceased who gave the earliest report. fie deposed that he was studying in B.Com Final year in the Junagadh college. He used to go to college from his village in the morning. He was at his uncles (PW-3) house. The night before the incident they used to sleep along with his cousin (PW-2). On that day, they were sleeping on the upstair. On the ground floor PW-3 was staying and he used to sleep in the sitting room. In the morning they heard the cries help help emanating from his father and coming from the western side. He and PW-2 got up from the room which was in the western side and saw the accused inflicting blows on the deceased on the chest and other parts of the body. The deceased then ran towards the house to take shelter and fell near the house of Bavanji. Both of them went to the place where the injured had fallen. By then, PW-3 also reached the place and all the