IMPORTANT POINT
Extra Judicial confession coupled with corroborating evidence can be a valid ground for conviction.

JUDGMENT

K. C. Agrawal, J. - Naseem Ahmad son of Abdul Hamid resident of village Burbanpur, police station Sheohara, district Bijnor has filed this appeal under Section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure against the judgment dated December 18, 1976 passed by the Second Additional Sessions Judge, Nainital in Sessions Trial No. A-123 of 1975, convicting him under Section 302 Indian Penal Code and sentencing him to life imprisonment.

2. On June 27. 1974 at about 11.40 P.M., Jagannath (P.W. 3) was on duty at Railway Station Ramnagar of the North. Eastern Railway. At that time 127 Up arrived from Moradabad. For purposes of clearing the line of a goods train which was stationed at the Ramnagar station be passed through compartment No. 7782A of 127 Up [train. - He had a lantern in his hand. He saw a man lying on the floor of the said compartment of 127 Up train who was covered with chadar. He met Tika Ram waterman on the way and asked him to awake the said person who was in the aforesaid compartment and, in the mean-time, he went to give signal to the goods train. On return after clearing the line of the goods train Jagannath (P. W. 3) again met Tika Ram aforesaid. Tika Ram told him that there were blood marks in the compartment where the person pointed out by Jagannath (P. W. 3) earlier was lying. Jagannath (P.W. 3) sent Tika Ram to call Rafiq Ahmad (P.W. 4) the station master. He thereafter telephoned the local police and sent a memo (Ex. Ka 5) intimating that one man was lying on the floor of the aforesaid compartment. The police was asked to attend immediately. After receipt of the message constable Rajendra Prasad (P.W. 7) prepared a chick at about 12.15 A.M., vide Ex. Ka 5 at Police Station Ramnagar. He also entered a case in the General Diary vide Ex. Ka 6. The papers were thereafter received by Hari Singh Tomar (P. W. 8) at about 8.30 A. M. through constable Budgi Singh while he was on gasht duty. Along with the constable and other police personnel he went to the spot and saw the dead body lying on the floor of the compartment. He found that the deceased had received one firearm injury in his chest. He sealed the dead body and sent the same for postmortem to Kashipur Civil Hospital through constable Abdul Wahid (P.W. 5) and Jagdish Chandra. He took samples of blood stained plaster as well as plain plaster of the compartment and sealed them on the spot and prepared the memo (Ex. Ka 12). He also took into possession a second class ticket from the pocket of the trouser of the deceased. Since the murder had been detected within the jurisdiction of the G.R.P. therefore S.I. Tomar entrusted the investigation to Bhupal Singh, S.O. G.R.P. Kathgodam who reached the spot on June 28, 1974 on receiving information from the station master.

3. The dead body was taken in the sealed cover to the Kashipur Civil Hospital by the two constables Abdul Wahid (P.W. 5) and Jagdish Chandra. Dr. N. C. Panrle (P.W. 14) performed the postmortem of the dead body at about 9. A.M. At that time, Rais Ahmad real brother of the deceased, reached with Abdul Hamid (P. W. 13) the hospital and identified the dead body to be that of his brother Kalua alias Mohd. Yaqub. On examination of the dead body, Dr. N. C. Pande (P.W. 14) found that the age of the deceased was about 22 and 25 years and about 37 hours had elapsed since his death. Rigor mortis had passed off. The antemortem injuries on the person of the deceased found were:

1. Multiple abrasion around right eye scattered in an area 10 cm x 10 cm.

2. Abrasion on left knee 3 cm x 3 cms.

3. Gunshot (firearm injury) on upper one third sternum ½ cm x ½ cm x depth of thoracic cavity fracturing bone. Profused bleeding; corresponding hole in shirt and undershirt. Blackening and tatooing present which was suggestive of near range".

4. On internal examination, Dr. Pande found hole and fracture in corresponding sternum of injury no. 3 and there was hole in lung corresponding to injury no 3 with massive haemorrhage 7