Judgment

M.K. MUKHERJEE, J.- The appellant was placed on trial before the Designated Court, New Delhi to answer charges under Section 5 of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987 (TADA for short) and Section 25 of the Arms Act, 1959. On conclusion of trial the learned Court recorded an order of conviction against the appellant in respect of both the charges. For the conviction under Section 5 of TADA the appellant was sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 5 years and to pay a fine of Rs 5000, in default, to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 6 months more but no separate sentence was passed for the other conviction. Hence this appeal.

2. Briefly stated, the prosecution case is that in the evening of 23-4-1991 a police party, while on patrol duty in and around Palam Village, found the appellant standing near the bus stand with a bag in his possession. As his movements aroused suspicion they apprehended him and searched the bag which was found to contain 8 country-made pistols and 31 live cartridges. As the appellant could not give any satisfactory explanation for possession of those arms and ammunition, they were seized under a recovery memo and then packaged and sealed. A first information report was thereafter lodged against the appellant at Dabri Police Station and SI Sube Singh took up investigation of the case. In course of investigation he forwarded the seized arms and ammunition to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) for examination. On completion of investigation and receipt of sanction from the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi to prosecute the appellant under Section 25 of the Arms Act he submitted charge-sheet against the appellant.

3. The appellant pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against him and his contention was that he was falsely implicated in the case at the instance of SI Sube Singh.

4. To prove the apprehension of the appellant and recovery of the arms and ammunition from his possession the prosecution relied upon the testimonies of Constable Jagpal Singh (PW 1) and Head Constable Ramesh Kumar (PW 2). Both of them stated that they were members of the police party that was on patrol duty on the date in question. They detailed the manner in which the appellant was apprehended at the bus stand with a bag in his possession and spoke about the recovery of country-made pistols and cartridges from that bag. They also testified that a recovery memo was prepared and signed by them. They next spoke about the packaging and sealing of those arms and ammunition.

5. Constable Bhim Singh (PW 3) testified that on 3-5-1991 he had taken the sealed parcels from the Malkhana of Dabri Police Station to CFSL and delivered them intact. The report of CFSL (Ext. A) shows that all the pistols were in working order and the cartridges were live. Constable Bhim Singh (PW 4) proved the sanction accorded by Deputy Commissioner of Police under Section 39 of the Arms Act which was marked by PW 4/A. Head Constable Khushi Ram (PW 5) who was the Duty Officer of Dabri Police Station on 23-4-1991 a proved the FIR Ex, PW 5/A. Constable Jasbir Singh (PW 6) proved that the arms and ammunition seized were deposited in the Malkhana of the police station and were forwarded to the CFSL from there through Constable Bhim Singh (PW 3).

6. Having carefully gone through the evidence of PW 1 and PW 2, two of the members of the raiding party, we do not find any reason to disbelieve them, more particularly when nothing could be elicited in the cross-examination to discredit them. On the contrary, their evidence is consistent and corroborates each other.

7. The learned counsel appearing for the appellant first contended that non-examination of SI Sube Singh who investigated into the case, raised a great suspicion about the truth and bona fides of the prosecution story. We do not find any substance in this contention. It appears that in spite of best efforts the prosecution could not produce him and therefore no