judgment

Tarun Chatterjee, J. —

1.This is an appeal against the judgment and order dated 21st of May, 1999 passed by the learned Judge of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in Criminal Appeal No.2921 of 1980 whereby the High Court had allowed the appeal of the accused/respondents and set aside the judgment and order dated 29th of November, 1980 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, VIth Court at Etah in Sessions Trial No.406 of 1978 (State of U.P. vs. Punni and 5 others) convicting the accused/respondents of the offences under Sections 399 and 402 of the Indian Penal Code (for short ‘the IPC’) and sentencing each one of them to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of 4 years and 2 years respectively and further convicting each one of them under Section 27 of the Arms Act and sentencing them to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of 6 months. However, all the aforesaid sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

2.The relevant facts leading to the filing of this appeal may be narrated, in a nutshell, which are as follows: —

3.The case of the prosecution, inter alia, was that on 15th of October, 1977, one Ram Charan Singh, Station Officer (S.O.) - Police Station S