JUDGMENT

C.K. Thakker, J.

1. Leave granted in S.L.P. (Crl.) No. 2965 of 2006.

2. Present criminal appeals are filed by Daya Singh Lahoriya @ Rajeev Sudan @ Vinay Kumar and Suman Sood @ Kamal Jeet Kaur @ Kanwaljit Kaur, husband and wife respectively against the judgment and order passed by the High Court of Judicature for Rajasthan (Jaipur Bench) dated March 20, 2006 in S.B. Criminal Appeal Nos. 1247 of 2004 and D.B. Criminal Appeal No. 11 of 2005 respectively.

3. By the said order, the High Court confirmed the order of conviction and sentence passed against Daya Singh for offences punishable under Sections 364A, 365, 343 read with 120B and 346 read with 120B Indian Penal Code (IPC). The said conviction was recorded by the Additional Sessions Judge (Fast Track) Category 1, Jaipur on October 20, 2004 in Sessions Case No. 26 of 2003. So far as Suman Sood is concerned, she was convicted by the trial Court for offences punishable under Sections 365 read with 120B, 343 read with 120B and 346 read with 120B IPC. She was, however, acquitted for offences punishable under Section 364A and in the alternative under Sections 364A read with 120B IPC. Her challenge against conviction and sentence for offences punishable under Sections 365 read with 120B, 343 read with 120B and 346 read with 120B IPC was negatived by the High Court. But her acquittal for offences punishable under Sections 364A read with 120B was set aside by the High Court in an appeal by the State and she was convicted for the said offence and was ordered to undergo imprisonment for life.

PROSECUTION CASE

4. To appreciate the controversy raised by the parties, few relevant facts may be stated.

5. It was the case of the prosecution that one Rajendra Mirdha, son of Shri Ram Niwas Mirdha was staying at 81-C, Azad Marg, C-Scheme, Jaipur. He used to regularly wake up at about 6.30/6.45 in the morning and to take walk for about an hour or an hour and a half. According to the prosecution, on February 17, 1995, as usual, he left his residence for a morning walk at about 7.00 a.m. He had hardly completed two or three rounds and when again he reached at the road for further rounds, he saw a white Maruti car and one man came out of it. The said man asked Rajendra Mirdha about the location of House No. 105 or 106. Before he could reply, he was pushed into the car and was taken away. There were three persons in the car having weapons. Rajendra Mirdha did not know why he was kidnapped. After some time, Mr. Mirdha was taken in one house. The kidnappers then told Mr. Mirdha that they were the members of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF). One of their members, Devendra Pal Singh Bhullar was arrested at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on the night of January 18-19, 1995 on his return to India after the German authorities declined to grant him asylum and the kidnappers wanted him to be released. It was also stated that the kidnappers had nothing against Rajendra Mirdha personally. It was also the case of the prosecution that at the relevant time, Shri Ram Niwas Mirdha, father of Rajendra Mirdha was heading Joint Parliamentary Committee, being a Chairman of the Committee. According to the kidnappers, Shri Ram Niwas Mirdha was thus an influential person and was in a position to get the said act done by the Government. According to the prosecution, PW 5 Udai Rani Mirdha, wife of Rajendra Mirdha received a telephonic call at about 8.40 a.m. from an unknown person who stated that Rajendra Mirdha had been made hostage and until and unless Devendra Pal Singh Bhullar was freed, they would not release Rajendra Mirdha. He further stated that neither Police should be informed nor the telephone be tapped. The caller also stated that he would again telephone Udai Rani Mirdha. Udai Rani informed the above incident and a call from unknown person to Harendra Mirdha, PW 29, younger brother of Rajendra Mirdha. Harendra Mirdha went to Ashok Nagar Police station and lodged First Informat