Judgment

( 1 ) THE appellants were tried for the offence of murder for having caused the death of five persons. All the three were sentenced to death by the sessions Court. The High Court in the death reference confirmed the death sentences of Karan Singh and Kanwar Bahadur Singh, Appellants 1 and 2 respectively, but as regards the third appellant Phool Singh, it was commuted to life imprisonment. The appellants challenged their conviction and sentence. We have heard the appellants and also counsel for the respondent state.

( 2 ) THE incident had happened at 8. 30 p. m. on 12-4-1999 in the district of hamirpur in the State of Uttar Pradesh. There was a long-standing enmity between the appellants on one hand and the deceased Malkhan Singh and others on the other hand. In the year 1982 one Channa Singh father of malkhan Singh was murdered. The present appellant Karan Singh and his father Sewa Singh were prosecuted for the murder. At that time the deceased malkhan Singh was only 7 to 8 years old and the appellant Karan Singh had a grievance that the properties were being enjoyed by Malkhan Singh and others. On the date of the incident the deceased Malkhan Singh along with one Mohd. Idr