IMPORTANT POINT
No formal proof of certain documents – Court has to appreciate, analyse and test creditworthiness of evidence led by prosecution which is available on record and if such evidence beyond reasonable doubt established charges, conviction could be recorded.

JUDGMENT :

VIKRAM NATH, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. By means of these appeals, the informant- appellant has assailed the correctness of the judgment and order dated 01.11.2023 passed by the Allahabad High Court in Criminal Appeal Nos.4982/2019, 5346/2019 and 5347/2019 whereby the High Court allowed the appeals, set aside the order of conviction passed by the Trial Court dated 15/16th July, 2019 and had remanded the matter to the Trial Court to decide the same afresh and that the matter be retried from the stage of testimony of PW 2 onwards. Further a direction was issued that the authors of the exhibited documents liable to establish the authenticity of the same would be cross- examined by the defence, and that the trial would proceed on day to day basis and shall conclude on or before 31st May, 2024. Further, the appellants before the High Court were to be released on bail on furnishing personal bonds and two heavy sureties each of the like amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned. They were further liable to give additional affidavit to the Trial Court concerned, that they would remain present on every day or as and when required by the Trial Court. It was further directed that the fine amount imposed by the Trial Court would remain stayed during the period of trial and would remain subject to final verdict to be pronounced by the Trial Court.

3. Brief facts giving rise to the present appeals are:

3.1 First Information Report¹[FIR] was lodged on 22.04.1998 at 05.30 am by the appellant which was registered as FIR bearing No.27/1998, Police Station Dhanapur, District Chandauli, U.P.under section 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860²[IPC] and 3(1)(v) of the SC/ST Act. According to the prosecution story, on the intervening night of 21/22.04.1998 the appellant (PW 1), Ram Dular (PW2) who were harvesting crops in the fields, on hearing gunshots, rushed to the pumping set from where the shots were being fired and saw that the four accused namely Radhey Shyam Lal A-1, Pratap A-2, Rajesh Kumar @ Pappu A-3 and Jagannath A-4 were assaulting the parents of the appellant namely Bodha Devi and Mohan Ram who belonged to Scheduled Caste. After brutally assaulting the two deceased, they threw their bodies into the well.

3.2 Upon registration of the FIR, the police came to the site and with the help of the villagers, pulled out the two dead bodies of parents of the appellant from the well. An inquest was prepared and their bodies were thereafter sent for post- mortem. The deceased Bodha Devi had suffered seven injuries all over her body including a fatal wound on the back of the chest extending upto the neck measuring 48 cm x 28 cm. The cause of death was recorded as due to the fracture in the vertebra and injury to the spinal cord. The postmortem of the deceased Mohan Ram disclosed as many as sixteen injuries which included eleven lacerated wounds and the cause of death was reported as death due to injuries to spine and spinal cord.

3.3 The Investigating Officer recovered blood soaked gamcha (scarf) belonging to accused Pratap (A-2), licensed SBBL gun with two live cartridges. From the place of occurrence, the Investigating Officer also recovered three empty-shell-casings of 12 bore, 1 live 12 bore cartridge, cardboard and plastic rods, tikli and other remnants of spent cartridges, apart from other standard recoveries. The recovered articles were sent to the forensic laboratory and as per the report one out of the three cartridges has been found to have been fired from the seized licensed SBBL gun. The FSL report further confirmed that in the barrel of the seized SBBL gun, there was residue of firing. Further, the presence of lead and nitrate clearly indicated that the gun had been recently used.

4. After completing the investigation charge-sheet was submitted. The Magistrate concerned took cognizance and thereafter committed the case to the Sessions Court for trial. The charges were read out to the four accused who denied the same and claimed