R.S.SARKARIA. J.

(1) THIS appeal is directed against an appellate judgment of the High court of Punjab and Haryana whereby the acquittal of Jit Singh, appellant herein, was reversed and converted into conviction for an offence under S. 302, Penal Code, with a sentence of imprison ment for life. The facts of the case, as they emerge from the record. are these.

(2) THE deceased is one Hari Singh of village Ramunwala. On 6/02/1968, his house was searched by the police for seizure of excisable articles but nothing incriminating was found. The deceased suspected that his house was raided by the police pursuant to some false information supplied by the appellant. On 9/02/1968, there was a sharp quarrel and exchange of abuse between the appellant and the deceased in the presence of Gurnam Singh (Public Witness 6). The deceased was protesting and demanding an explanation from the appellant for causing the police raid on his house. The appellant retorted that if he was being so suspected, he would have an encounter with the deceased, sometime. Gurnam Singh separated and pacified them.

(3) ON 10/02/1968, about half an hour before sunset, Baldev Singh (Public Witness 3) son of the deceased went to his uncle, Nahar Singh (Public Witness 4) in the village for borrowing the latters cart for carting manure on the following morning. While Baldev Singh and Nahar Singh were chit- chatting in the lathers doorway, they heard an exchange of abuses between the deceased and. the appellant from the direction of the house of one Kala Singh. Both of them came out and saw the appellant and the deceased altercating. Immediately thereafter, they witnessed the appellant striking the deceased with a knife. Shouting to the assailant to desist from the assault, they proceeded to the spot. Mukhtiar Singh (Public Witness 5) was also attracted to the spot. He also witnessed the occurrence. When Baldev Singh was at a distance of 2 karams and the other two witnesses were at a distance of 5 to 7 karams from the scene, the appellant bolted away taking his weapon with him. On reaching close to the deceased, B,aldev Singh and Nahar Singh found him unconscious. Soon thereafter, Harnek Singh, another son of the deceased, also arrived there. Harnek Singh brought Gurnam Panch (Public Witness 6) to the spot. Baldev Singh then informed him that the appellant had stabbed the deceased. The sons of the deceased laid Hari Singh on a cot and with the aid of Gurnam Singh and Mukhtiar Singh, carried him to the Civil Hospital, Moga, six or seven miles away. They reached the hospital at 10 p.m. The medical officer, Dr. Manohar Singh, examined Hari Singh and prepared a statement of his injuries. The doctor sent the note, Ex. P-2, to the city police station, Moga informing them about the precarious condition of Hari Singh. On receiving the note. Assistant Sub-Inspector Kundan Singh (Public Witness 9) reached the hospital at 10-15 p.m. He found the deceased unconscious and unfit to make a statement. Thereupon he recorded the statement (Ex. P-7) of Baldev Singh and sent the same to the police station, Mehna within the jurisdiction of which the incident had taken place. On the basis of that statement, a case under S. 307/326, Penal Code was registered in the police station, Mehna at 12-30 a.m., of February 11.

(4) HARI Singh succumbed to his injuries in the Civil Hospital, Moga at about midnight. Dr. Manohar Singh then sent an intimation (Ex. P-4) of Hari Singhs death to the Moga police. Thereupon, Assistant Sub- inspector, Kundan Singh came to the hospital and prepared the inquest report.

(5) A.S.I. Darshan Singh (Public Witness 10) of P. S. Mehna reached the scene of occurrence and removed the bloodstained earth therefrom on the morning of February 11. Subsequently, S. I. Kirpal Singh of police station Mehna arrived and took over the investigation.

(6) JIT Singh was arrested by the police on 11/02/1968 at the bus stand of village