Shailendra Singh, J. – Heard Mr. Jai Shankar Pathak, learned counsel assisted by Ms. Swastika, Advocate appearing for the sole appellant and Ms. Shashi Bala Verma, learned APP appearing for the State.

2. The present appeal has been preferred by the sole appellant, namely, Shankar Sahni with a prayer to set aside the judgment dated 18.08.2012 and order of sentence dated 24.08.2012 passed by the court of learned 2nd Additional District & Sessions Judge, Patna City, in connection with Sessions Trial Case No. 108 of 2008 arising out of Didarganj P.S. Case No. 48 of 2007, G.R. No. 696 of 2007, whereby and whereunder the appellant has been convicted for the offences under sections 302 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code (herein-after referred to as the “IPC”) and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life under section 302 of the IPC, with fine of Rs. 50,000/- and in default of payment of the same, the appellant has been directed to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for three years. The appellant has also been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years under section 201 of the IPC with fine of Rs. 5,000/- and in default of payment of the same, he has been directed to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year. Both the sentences have been directed to run concurrently.

Prosecution Story:

3. The substance of the prosecution story is as follows: –

As per the informant, namely, Rajendra Sahni (examined as P.W.-8), on 16.04.2007, there was marriage ceremony of the daughter of one Luxmi Sahni, in which he was busy and on that day, in the night between 8 to 9 P.M., his son, namely, Munna Sahni went missing, whereafter he searched for him till late night 2 A.M. The next morning, he heard a hulla raised by persons who had gone out to attend the call of nature near the bank of river Ganga whereupon he reached near the electric tower and found the dead body of his son lying on the western side at a distance of about 10 bamboos from that electric tower. The informant has further alleged that the mouth of his son was full of sand and several persons had assembled there. In the meantime, one boy, namely, Bittu Kumar (PW-9), aged about 10 years, son of one Doman Chaudhary, resident of village Banskothi Digha, who had come to his nanihal (parental village of his mother), came and stated before him that Shankar Sahni (appellant), aged about 22 years at that time, son of one Rajendra Sahni, resident of village Banstar, had demanded Shikhar (a kind of Gutka) at about 8 P.M. in the last night and due to fear, he fled away from there but the appellant caught hold of Munna Sahni (hereinafter referred to as ‘deceased or victim’) and according to him, it was he (appellant) who had killed the deceased. As per the informant, upon knowing about the incident from Bittu Kumar, his villagers caught hold of the appellant who confessed his guilt before him and the villagers, namely, Uma Shankar Sahni, Bullu Kumar (not examined), Deepak Kumar (PW-2), Krishna Kumar (PW-5) Tula Sahni (PW-7) and Mani Kumar Sahni (PW-3), all residents of Banstar village and also before others and in the meantime, the police came. As per the informant, when the appellant was caught, besides confessing his guilt, he also revealed the reason behind his act of murder and he stated that the informant’s wife (deceased’s mother) had helped in fleeing of his sister 10-15 days before the alleged incident, due to which, being enraged, he has killed the deceased by filling sand in his mouth and pressing his neck and thereafter, he had fled away.

4. Giving the details of the aforesaid facts, the informant recorded his fardbeyan on 17.04.2007 at 7:45 A.M. before a police inspector of Didarganj police station. On that basis, the formal FIR bearing Didarganj P.S. Case No. 48 of 2007 was registered for the offences under sections 302 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code (in short ‘IPC’) against the sole accused, who is the appellant herein, which set the criminal law in motion