JUDGMENT :

T.V. Nalawade, J.

All the three appeals are filed against the judgment and order of Sessions Case No.50/2012 which was pending in the Court of the learned Additional Sessions Judge Ambajogai. The trial court has convicted and sentenced accused No.1 Amol and accused No.2 Atamaram for the offence punishable under section 376(g) of the Indian Penal Code and also for other offences punishable under the provisions of sections 3 (1)(xii), 3(2) (v) and 4 of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Accused No.3 Smt. Ashabai, who has filed Criminal Appeal No.34/2014, is convicted and sentenced for offence punishable under section 306 of the Indian Penal Code. Imprisonment for life is given to accused Nos.1 and 2 and rigorous imprisonment for 10 years is given to accused No.3. Both the sides are heard.

2. In short, the facts leading to the institution of these three appeals can be stated as follows:

3. The prosecutrix was aged about 19 years at the relevant time. Accused No.1 Amol was aged 22 years and accused No.3 Atamaram was aged about 23 years. Accused Nos.1 and 2 together were plying taxi to earn the livelihood. Accused No.3 was working as Home-guard at the relevant time.

4. The prosecutrix hails from village Amalache Barad, Tahsil Kaij, District Beed. She had two sisters and two brothers. Two sisters were married and at the relevant time, the married sister Tilotama and her husband had come to Amalache Barad for short stay on account of one festival. Accused Nos.1 and 2 hail from different village and accused No.3 is also of other village.

5. The case was filed in respect of two incidents. One incident is of gang rape and after few days of the gang rape, the prosecutrix attempted to commit suicide and it is contended that accused No.3 had driven her to commit suicide by creating pressure on her.

6. The first incident took place on 20-2-2012. On that day the prosecutrix and her younger sister Babinanda left home in the morning for visiting temple of Lord Shiva situated at Uttareshwar Pimpri. The husband of Tilotama and Tilotama had also left for that place and these 2 sisters met the husband of Tilotama at Uttareshwar Pimpri. They had a darshan of Lord Shiva. When they wanted to return to Amalache Barad, the prosecutrix realised that the money which she had brought for expenses was exhausted. The husband of Tilotama was having a small gold ear-ring. He handed over it to the prosecutrix and asked her to sell it and collect money. From Uttareshwar Pimpri, the prosecutrix went to Kaij, Tahsil place, for selling the ear-ring and she reached there at about 6.30 p.m. As she was a girl aged about 19 years, she was not having the receipt, the goldsmith from Kaij refused to purchase the ear-ring. She was having some cash amount so she went upto Massajog for returning to Amalache Barad.

7. When the prosecutrix was waiting at Massajog for some conveyance, accused Nos.1 and 2 came there with their jeep. They offered lift to the prosecutrix by saying that they would reach her to her village. As she had no money, she boarded the jeep. The accused took the jeep first to Uttareshwar Pimpri and there the accused dropped the passengers who were already in the jeep.

8. When they left Uttareshwar Pimpri it was dark, 8.00 to 8.30 p.m. On the way back, accused Nos.1 and 2 took the jeep to one kachha road and they stopped the jeep there. On that road by giving threats of life, accused Nos.1 and 2 committed rape on the prosecutrix one after other. After the incident, they left the prosecutrix to Uttareshwar Phata. It was night time, nobody was in the vicinity and the prosecutrix helplessly stayed at Uttareshwar Phata. As the prosecutrix had not returned to home, the husband of Tilotama and the parents of the prosecutrix started taking search for the prosecutrix. At about 10.00 p.m. the father of the prosecutrix noted that the prosecutrix was standing at Uttareshwar Phata.

9. At Uttareshwar Phata, the prosecutrix discl