JUDGMENT :

Surya Kant, J.

1. These petitions, which were heard through video conferencing, have been filed by Satish and Vikky @ Vikendra alias Virendra, seeking special leave to appeal against a common order dated 28.04.2017 of the Allahabad High Court through which their appeal against conviction under Section 364-A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter, “IPC”) and consequential sentence of life imprisonment, was turned down.

FACTS

2. The undisputable facts of the case are that on the evening of 12.06.2002, when one Vishal Sarawat (the victim) was on his way to meet a friend, he was stopped by an acquaintance - Ramvir Rana who asked him for a lift to his house. The unsuspecting victim walked into Ramvir’s house where he was threatened with a pistol and forcibly administered tablets by the present petitioners and one Ashok. Vishal was subsequently coerced to write a letter dated 04.07.2002 to his father, seeking a ransom of Rs. 2 crores. In the meanwhile, the victim’s father - Nepal Singh (the complainant) filed a missing report with the police regarding his son. Vikky telephoned the victim’s father on 10.07.2002, pretending to be one ‘Shekhar’. He exhorted him to seek help of R