( 1 ) SINCE both these appeals are separately filed by the accused Nos. 1 and 2 against the same judgment and order of the learned Special Judge, Junagadh in Atrocity Special Case No. 60 of 1999, the same are being disposed of by this common judgment.

( 2 ) THE brief facts giving rise to these two appeals are as under:

( 3 ) THAT the complainant is the father of the prosecutrix and belonging to schedule caste community, while the present appellants are belonging to Patel community and they are brothers. Both the appellants and the complainant are belonging to village Motimonpari of Visavadar Taluka of Dist. Junagadh. The case of the prosecution is that the complainant have got five daughters and one son wherein victim Ms. X is fourth child and she was kidnapped from the lawful custody and guardianship of the complainant and was seduced to sexual inter-course by the accused persons on 05. 08. 1999. At the time of the incident, the mother of the victim Ms. X was away from the village while complainant was in the field and only the victim Ms. X along with her sisters and brother were present in the house and when the complainant returned from the field, he came to know that the victim Ms. X has left the house whereupon he inquired about her in the surrounding place and when she could not be traced out, the complainant gave the Janvajog entry No. 10 of 1999 in Visavadar Police Station on 06. 08. 1999 and thereafter upon making further inquiry, he came to know that in his absence, accused No. 1 i. e. Dinesh Karamshi Radadia of Motimonpari village kidnapped victim Ms. X on motorcycle and took her away to his field and against her will and consent, seduced to sexual intercourse and thereafter, he has taken her to Bilkha village where co-accused Vinu Karamshi Radadia was waiting for them along with another person, Raju. It is also the case of prosecution that victim Ms. X was taken to Junagadh Bus station and from there to Vapi at the residence of his brother Purushottambhai Karamshi. She was kept at Vapi without the consent of the parents of victim Ms. X. It is, therefore, the case of the prosecution that knowing fully well that the family of the complainant and the victim girl Ms. X were belonging to Harijan community, the accused persons kidnapped her and thereafter raped her and thus committed the offence punishable under Sections 363, 366, 376 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code and under Section 3 (1) (5) of the Prevention of Atrocity (Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe), Act.

( 4 ) PURSUANT to registration of FIR, investigation was put into motion. During the course of investigation, statements of the witnesses were recorded, injury certificate of the victim was obtained, panchnama of the scene of offence was prepared, clothes of the accused as well as victim were also recovered by drawing a panchnama, which were sent to F. S. L. for chemical analysis. After obtaining F. S. L. Report and the certificate issued by the Doctor and also obtaining birth certificate of the victim, since sufficient incriminating evidence was found against the accused, they were charge-sheeted in the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Visavadar.

( 5 ) AS the offence under Sections 363, 366, 376 and 14 of IPC was exclusively triable by the court of Sessions, learned JMFC, Visavadar committed the case to the Sessions Court, Junagadh. The learned Special Judge, Junagadh to whom the case was made over for trial, framed charge against the accused for commission of the offence punishable under Sections 363, 366, 376 and 14 of IPC as well as Section 3 (1)5) of the Prevention of Atrocity (Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe), Act.

( 6 ) THE charge was read over and explained to the accused as the accused pleaded not guilty to the charge. They were put to trial and tried by the learned Special Judge, Junagadh in Atrocity Special Sessions Case No. 60 of 1999.

( 7 ) TO prove the culpability of the accused, prosecution has in all examined as