Judgment:

Dr. Arijit Pasayat, J.

1. Challenge in this appeal is to the judgment of a Division Bench of the Karnataka High Court upholding the convictions of the appellants for offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short the ‘IPC). The appellant No.1 was additionally convicted for offence punishable under Section 326 IPC.

2. Prosecution version in a nutshell are as follows:

The accused nos.1 to 3 - the deceased and injured belonged to Salahalli Village. There is a tea shop of the accused No.1 situated outside the village, by the side of the compound of which a public road is situated, some jail hedges have grown in the said land of accused No.1 by the other side of the road, which have over grown obstructing to some extent the public path. With regard to the inconvenience caused to the passersby and the persons taking vehicles like tractor, the complainant - Irappa Aijappa Kuri (P.W.5) often complained to the accused No.1 to cut the excess hedges, to which the accused No.1 paid no heed. On 1.2.1995, while coming home, the complainant asked the accused No.1 to cut the excess growth of hedge for which the accused No.1 became angry and threatened that h