JUDGMENT

Dr. Arijit Pasayat, J. —

1. Leave granted.

2. Challenge in this appeal is to the judgment of a Division Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissing the appeal filed by the appellant and upholding his conviction for offences punishable under Sections 302, 452 and 504 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short ‘the IPC’) and sentence of imprisonment for life, rigorous imprisonment for three years and one year respectively with fine and default stipulations.

3. Appellant faced trial along with one Sukku alias Sikku, who was convicted for offence punishable under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC and the other offences, as in the case of present appellant.

4. Both the accused persons had preferred appeals before the High Court questioning correctness of the judgment recorded by learned 6th Additional Sessions Judge, Jabalpur, in Sessions Trial No.19 of 1997.

5. In brief the prosecution is that Ganesh Prasad, who is the author of the FIR heard hue and cry of Shakunbai at about 8-9 PM as a result of which he came out from his house and saw appellant Ram Singh carrying knife in his hand was coming out from the house of Laddu alias Baisakhu (hereinafter referred to as ‘the