JUDGMENT

B.A.Patil, J. - Criminal appeal No.576/2015 has been preferred by the appellant/accused No.1. Criminal Appeal No.100132/2015 has been preferred by the State and Criminal appeal No.100091/2015 has been filed by the complainant challenging the judgment dated 27.03.2015 passed by the VII Addl. District and Sessions Judge, Belagavi, sitting at Chikodi in S.C.No.395/2011, whereunder accused Nos. 2 to 7 have been acquitted for the offences punishable under Sections 143, 147, 148, 324, 302, 307, 120(B), 109 and 201 read with Section 149 of the IPC and accused No.1 is also acquitted for the offences punishable under Sections 143, 147, 148, 120(B) and 109 of IPC, but however he has been convicted for the offences punishable under Sections 302, 307 and 324 of IPC. Challenging the acquittal, complainant and the State are before this Court and against the order of conviction, appellant/accused No.1 is before this Court.

2. We have heard the learned counsel Sri. A. G. Mulawadamath for appellant/accused No.1, learned Addl. SPP Sri. V. M. Banakar for the State and learned counsel Sri. Santosh B. Malagoudar for the complainant.

3. Since all these appeals are arising out of the same judgment, they have been clubbed together and disposed of by this common judgment.

4. The genesis of the case of the prosecution in brief is that the land of the complainant Shankaragouda Ramagouda Patil and accused no.2 Siddappa are adjacent to each other. In the year 2002, there was some boundary disputes. The elder brother of accused No.2 assaulted the brother of the complainant. In that regard, there was a grudge between them. In that light, in the year 2003, deceased Shashikant Ramagouda Patil and his younger brother Chandrakant Ramagouda Patil committed murder of the elder brother of accused No.2 and one Annappa Kallappa Shankar Kabbur attempted to commit the murder of accused No.5 Gyanu Solankar and caused injury to him. In this regard, a complaint has been registered in Crime No.114/2003. It is further alleged that the deceased Shashikant Patil, Chandrakant Patil and injured Rajesab Gaddekar and 7 other persons murdered Appasab Shivagouda Desai, who helped the witnesses of murder case in Crime No.114/2003. Another case was also registered in Crime No.7/2007 in between the parties and both the cases ended in acquittal. Being aggrieved by the order of acquittal, the accused persons were having grudge and enmity against the deceased and others. In that light, they conspired to eliminate the deceased. On 29.06.2011, at about 12.00 pm, accused No.7 Dondibha informed and abetted other accused persons to follow the motorcycle of the deceased, wherein he was proceeding as a pillion rider and the same was riding by PW2 - Rajesab Gaddekar. It is the further case of the prosecution that the deceased and Rajesab left the Bireshwar temple on the motorcycle belonging to PW2. When they came near the garden house of one Shankar Balappa Hugar on Hulagabali- Athani Road, accused Nos. 1 to 7 with their common object being the members of an unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapons like sickle etc., came on the Scorpio jeep and with an intention to kill the deceased, accused No.1 drove the jeep accompanied with other accused persons in a high speed and dashed against the motorcycle on which the deceased Shashikant and Rajesab were coming. As a result of the said impact, both fell down on the ground. Thereafter all the accused persons dragged the deceased Shashikant on the road and accused No.1 moved the jeep on the deceased and thereby he committed the murder of Shashikant. When Rajesab, Shankaragouda Patil and Ravi Patil tried and requested the accused not to cause any harm to Shashikant, accused No.4 Murusidda threatened their life by showing the sickle and subsequently, accused Nos. 1, 2 and 7, with an intention to destroy the evidence have thrown their mobile phone elsewhere and thereby they have committed the offence. It is further alleged that, immediately Raje