IMPORTANT POINT
Provisions of section 360(1) Criminal Procedure Code, do not come into operation when the offence is punishable with death or imprisonment for life.

JUDGMENT

R. S. Thakur, J. - This appeal under section 377 of the Code of Criminal Procedure has been directed against the order of conviction passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Hamirpur, dated January 8, 1981, in a case under section 436 of the Indian Penal Code whereby he held the respondent accused Sheelan Devi (hereinafter referred to as the accused) guilty for the said offence but instead of sentencing her he extended the benefit of the provisions of section 360 read with section 361 of the Cr. P.C. and ordered her release subject to her furnishing personal bond with one surety in the sum of Rs. 5,000/- each for a period of three years and to come and receive sentence within the said period as and when called upon to do so and in the meantime to keep peace and be of good behaviour. Besides this, he also made her release subject to payment of Rs. 1500/- as compensation to the complainant Sarvan Kumar.

2. The prosecution case against the accused before the trial court was that the accused and the complainant Sarwan Kumar belong to the same village Gujoh in district Hamirpur. On April 29, 1980, the goats of the accused damaged the wheat crop of the said Sarwan Kumar and when the latter remonstrated in this behalf the accused started hurling abuses at him and continued doing so for the successive two or three days. Again on May 2, 1980, when one Kanshi Ram of the same village was protesting with the accused that his sugar-cane crop was damaged by the goats of the accused the complainant Sarwan Kumar again broached up the topic with the said Kanshi Ram that the goats of the accused had on April 29, 1980, also damaged his wheat crop. On this the accused again started abusing said Sarwan Kumar and during that verbal altercation between the accused and Sarwan Kumar on May 2, 1980, the accused threatened that she would burn his house.

3. According to the prosecution the same evening at about 9 p.m. said Sarwan Kumar accompanied by one Hushnaki Ram of his village then went to the house of the member of the gram panchayat of the village, Thunia Ram, in the same village to lodge a report with him that the accused had not only abused him but also threatened that she would burn his house.

4. Just as the said Sarwan Kumar was making this complaint orally to the member gram panchayat, Thunia Ram, by sitting in the court-yard of his house they saw that the cowshed of Sarwan Kumar was on fire. The said Sarwan Kumar, Hushnaki Ram and one Ishwar Dass son of the said Thunia Ram then rushed towards the place of this incident. Meanwhile, they saw that one Raghunath of the same village was at his cattle-shed near the cattle-shed of Sarwan Kumar and they all then rescued the cattle of Sarwan Kumar from the fire who were tied in the court-yard of the cattle-shed by setting them free. The entire cattle shed of Sarwan Kumar which was a thatched one and which also served as store for cattle fodder and fuel wood was completely destroyed by fire including the fodder and the fuel wood stored in it which resulted in loss to the said Sarwan Kumar to the tune of Rs. 5,000/-.

5. According to -the prosecution the said Sarwan Kumar and-his companion while running towards the cattle-shed as also Raghunath who was at his cattle-shed had seen the accused running away from the scene of fire at the time when it was detected that the cowshed of Sarwan Kumar was on fire. At about 11 p.m. on the same day, that is May 2, 1980, Sh. Munshi Ram the Pardhan of Gram Panchayat Sohal which comprised of village Kujoh also came on the scene of occurrence and after making enquiries as to how the cattle-shed of Sarwan Kumar caught fire, he lodged a report in the police station Hamirpur on the phone from the Polytechnic Institute near there. The police immediately thereafter arrived on the spot for investigation and arrested the accused on May 3, 1980, and subsequently sent her up to stand her trial under section 436 of the Indian Penal Code.

6. The accused was tried by the lea