Sanjay Pratap Singh @ Sanjay Singh vs State of Bihar

Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2023 Supreme(Pat) 1003

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
ASHUTOSH KUMAR and VIPUL M. PANCHOLI, JJ.
Criminal Appeal (DB) Nos.1041 with 1014, 1025, 1045, 1052, 1064, 1093, 1109, 1127, 1141, 1144, 1163, 1168, 1200 of 2018
(7.10.2023)
Sanjay Pratap Singh @ Sanjay Singh (in 1041)
Sanjay Bahadur (in 1014)
Bhaskar Sinha @ Bhaskar Kumar Sinha (in 1025)
Rakesh Choudhary @ Bhandhi Choudhary @ Bhandi (in 1045)
Pappu Chaudhary (in 1052)
Upendra Kumar (in 1064, 1093)
Ashok Rai @ Ashok Kumar Rai (in 1109)
Rakesh Singh @ Prakash Kumar Singh (in 1127)
Sanoj Yadav (in 1141)
Manoj Surhi (in 1144)
Manoj Yadav @ Manoj Kumar Yadav (in 1163)
Saroj Prasad (in 1168)
Mantu Singh (in 1200)
vs.
State of Bihar ... Respondent
(in all)

Advocates Appeared:
For the Appellants : M/s Prabhakar Singh, Adv. (Amicus), Prabhat Ranjan, Chandan Kumar(in 1041); Sada Nand Roy, Navin Kumar (in 1014); Baxi S.R.P. Sinha, Sr. Adv., Brajesh Prasad Gupta(in 1025, 1052, 1064, 1093); Prabhakar Singh, Adv (in 1045); Ravindra Kumar(in 1109, 1144); Ajay Kumar Thakur, Ritwik Thakur, Vaishnavi Singh (in 1127); Sunil Kumar, Bimal Kumar (in 1141); Surj Bansh Roy (in 1163, 1168); Shiva Shankar Prasad Singh, Pushpendra Priyedarshi (in 1200).
For the Respondents: M/s Shashi Bala Verma, SPP(in 1041); Sadanand Paswan, SPP (in 1014, 1093, 1141, 1127, 1163, 1168, 1200); Usha Kumari No-1, SPP(in 1025, 1045); Binay Krishna, SPP(in 1052, 1064, 1109, 1144).

Headnote:
Bihar and Orissa Excise Act, 1915 – Section 47(a) – Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 – Section 3(2) (v) – Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Sections 272, 273, 328 and 304 (Part-II)/34 – Hooch tragedy – Multiple deaths due to sell and consumption of spurious liquor – Conviction and sentence – No effort has been made by investigating team to have liquor tested that liquor was adulterated, spurious and not fit for consumption – Link evidence of such spirit having been sold with knowledge and purpose of being used in manufacturing illicit liquor is completely absent – There is no direct evidence against any one of appellants who have been hounded by investigating agency for reason of either their being erstwhile dealers of local liquor under licence or of having sold liquor under garb of expired licences, clandestinely when on a particular day around twenty one persons died of consuming the same – There appears to be knee-jerk reaction of local police and superior police administration to find out cause of twenty one deaths and in the process, persons whose names were taken by relatives of deceased as suppliers, became sitting ducks – Merely because a large number of persons had died because of consumption of illicit liquor; that some appellants were licensees of local liquor and that from constructive possession of a few of appellants, liquor bottles and pouches were recovered, contents of which were never sent for any forensic examination, appellants cannot be saddled with guilt and consequent sentence – That victims were members of scheduled castes/tribes community, cannot be sole reason for attracting mischief of special legislation regarding prevention of atrocities on scheduled castes and scheduled tribes – Judgment of conviction and order of sentence set aside – Appeals allowed. (Paras 47, 50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 56 and 57)

Ashutosh Kumar, J. – All these fourteen appeals have been heard together and are being disposed off by this common judgment.

2. Heard the learned counsel for the parties appearing in the respective appeals.

3. All the appellants except appellant/Bhaskar Sinha @ Bhaskar Kumar Sinha [Cr. Appeal (DB) No. 1025 of 2018] have been convicted for the offences under Sections 272, 273, 328 and 304 (Part-II)/34 of the Indian Penal Code (in short the I.P.C.), Section 3(2) (v) of the Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 [in short the SC/ST (POA) Act] and Section 47(a) of the Bihar and Orissa Excise Act, 1915 (in short the Excise Act) vide judgment dated 24.07.2018 and by order dated 28.07.2018, they have been sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs. 25,000/- each for the offences under Section 304 (Part-II)/34 of the I.P.C. read with Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST (POA) Act; six months R.I. and a fine of Rs. 500/- each for the offences under Sections 272 and 273 of the I.P.C.; R.I. for five years and a fine of Rs. 5,000/- each for the offence under Section 328 of the I.P.C. and two years R.I. and a fine of Rs. 2,000/- each for the offence under Section 47(a) of the Excise Act.

4. The appellant/Bhaskar Sinha @ Bhaskar Kumar Sinha, referred to above, has been held guilty under Section 47(a) of the Excise Act and has been awarded R.I. for two years with a fine of Rs. 2,000/- and in default of payment of fine, he has further been directed to suffer S.I. for six months.

5. The sentences against all the appellants have been directed to run concurrently.

6. Twenty one (21) persons lost their lives to spurious liquor which they had consumed.

7. All the appellants are alleged to have sold the spurious liquor to the unsuspecting consumers, all of whom died because of excess of methyl and ethyl alcohol in their bodies. One of the witnesses has alleged to have been blinded as an effect of consumption of spurious liquor.

8. A tragic incident indeed!

9. All of unsuspecting consumers died in a shot span of time within a day.

10. Initially, the local police officer suspected that the deceased were afflicted with some mysterious disease which has not been diagnosed. However, with the recovery of few pouches of locally brewed liquor around the dead-bodies of the deceased and few bottles of liquor recovered from behind the houses in constructive possession of some of the appellants, it was found out that the spurious liquor was the culprit.

11. All the twenty one dead-bodies were subjected to post-mortem examination and the viscera was also sent to Forensic Laboratory for further confirmation about death because of spurious liquor, which proved positive.

12. Hence, a case was instituted arraigning many persons as accused, most of whom are either the erstwhile licensees to sell liquor or local dealers, whose names were taken by the relatives of the deceased.

13. A peculiar shortcut approach was adopted by the police and somehow or the other disquietingly the Trial Court also fell in error in convicting and sentencing the appellants on practically no evidence at all.

14. The learned Advocates, who have appeared for the appellants have in unison stated that the conviction rests solely on presumption of the appellants having sold spurious liquor to the deceased persons. There is no evidence of any sale of liquor by the appellants nor the liquor, which is said to have been recovered from the possession of some of the appellants, were sent for any forensic examination.

15. It is quite unfortunate, it has been argued, that twenty one persons have lost their lives, which number could be more, but equally disconcerting is the manner in which the case has been investigated and the Trial has been conducted. The Trial Court appears to have completely foreclosed the discussion with regard to the innocence of the appellants. The names of the appellants have only been taken by some of the witnesses and on the information deriv