JUDGMENT

1. This appeal is preferred against the Judgment and Order dated 22.06.2011 passed by the Court of I Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mysuru, in Special Case No.26/2009, wherein the accused/appellants are convicted and sentenced for offences punishable under Sections 138(1)(a) of the Electricity Act, 2003, Section 429 of IPC and Section 9 r/w Section 51 of the Wild Life Protection Act.

2. Heard the learned counsel for appellants and the learned High Court Government Pleader for State and perused the material on record.

3. Brief facts of the prosecution case are that, on 31.10.2008 at around 10.00 a.m., P.W.2 who was working as a watcher in the Forest Department was informed by some boys about the death of an elephant in the land belonging to P.W.4-D.Sundar Das. Immediately he went to the spot and found a dead elephant and also noticed that there was a solar fence put up around the land and there was a pump house and from the said pump house, electric connection had been taken unauthorizedly to the solar fence. He passed the information to P.W.1 who was working as Range Forest Officer in Antharasanthe Wild Life Range. P.W.1 on getting the information, went to the spot a