JUDGMENT

Prithviraj K.Chavan, J. - Feeling aggrieved with and dissatisfied by the impugned judgment and order of conviction passed by additional Sessions Judge, Greater Bombay, on 12th February, 2013, convicting the appellants of the offence punishable under Section 302 of Indian Penal Code and sentencing them to suffer life imprisonment, present appeals have been preferred.

2. Prosecution story goes like this.

i) Deceased Mohd. Yusuf Mohd. Shahid Shaikh (for short 'the deceased'), who was working as a labour on contract basis in 'Bisleri Company' , had been to andheri Sahar road near 'Gol Building' to watch 'Garba' dance on 13.10.2010 at about 9.30 pm along with his friends. While returning home at about 10.40 pm, he was accosted by accused No.1 Imtiyaz Mohd. Shahid Shaikh and his brother (original accused No.4) - juvenile in conflict with law and accused No. 2 Nurul Shamsul Haq Shah on a footpath of Nagori ajmeri Dairy. all of them picked up quarrel with the deceased on account of some previous dispute. Deceased was beaten by kicks and fists blows. Meanwhile, accused No.2 Nurul, by a telephonic message, called accused No.3 Mohd. Sahil Rabban Khan, who was a companion of one Nirmal Singh, a known bully. No sooner did accused No. 3 Mohd. Sahil Rabban Khan reached the spot, he whipped out a sharp edged weapon and inflicted its blows on the chest and stomach of the deceased. There was a lot of hue and cry. People in the vicinity gathered there. The assailants made their escape good from the spot. The deceased was admitted in Cooper hospital by his friend Mushtaq and neighbours. He was in I.C.U.

ii) PW 10 B.B.Rane, who was attached to Vile Parle police station as Police Inspector, upon receiving information about the assault, rushed to the Cooper hospital and recorded statement of the deceased in the presence of the Medical Officer. On the basis of the said statement, he registered a crime, vide CR No.578/2010 under Sections 307, 504 read with 34 of IPC. However, on 14.10.2020 around 21.30 hrs. the deceased succumbed to the injuries on his person. It is the case of the prosecution that at the time of recording his statement, the deceased had disclosed each of the assailants by naming them in particular to PW 10 Rane. The Investigating Officer conducted investigation into the crime. He visited the scene of occurrence. He drew a spot panchanama in the presence of panch witnesses. He had recorded the statements of the witnesses. Clothes on the person of the deceased, which were at the time of the incident, were seized under a panchanama. During the course of investigation, on the basis of a voluntary statement of accused No.3 Mohd. Sahil, had collected samples of blood-stained soil from the spot by drawing a panchanama (Exh.20). Meanwhile, deceased succumbed to the injuries and, therefore, Section 302 of IPC came to be added. The accused were arrested. During custody of accused No.3 Mohd. Sahil, pursuant to his voluntary statement, the weapon used in commission of the offence came to be recovered at his instance by drawing a panchanama under Section 27 of the Evidence act. The muddemal property was sent for chemical analysis to the forensic laboratory. after the investigation and as a result of investigation, charge sheet has been laid in the Court of 10th Metropolitan Magistrate, andheri against the four accused.

3. The learned Magistrate committed the case to the Court of Sessions as the offences were exclusively triable by the Court of Sessions.

4. all the accused were produced before the additional Sessions Judge on 20.12.2011.

5. Charge (Exh.-9) was framed under Section 302 read with 34 of IPC. It was read over and explained to each of the accused in vernacular, to which, they pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried.

6. Defence, as emerged from the line of cross-examination as well as from their statements made under Section 313 of Cr.P.C., is that they have been falsely implicated in this case. No defence evidence has been adduced