The court applied exception 4 to Section 300 of the IPC to determine the appropriate charges and convictions based on the nature of injuries and the circumstances of the incident.

Sureshwar Thakur, Judge

Cr. Appeal Nos. 349, 360, 361 and 436 of 2012.

The instant appeals are directed against the impugned judgment rendered on 29.6.2012, by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Sirmaur District at Nahan, in Sessions trial No. 7/N/7 of 2011, whereby, the learned trial Court convicted and sentenced the accused/appellants as under:

Section 302/34 IPC:

to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.20,000/- each and in default to further undergo simple imprisonment for a period of three months;

Section 307/34 IPC:

to undergo 4 years rigorous imprisonment each and to pay a fine of Rs. 5000/- each and in default of payment of fine to further undergo simple imprisonment for 1 month;

Section 120-B IPC: to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 6 months.

However, the learned trial court acquitted the accused/appellants of the charge under Sections 148 and 149 of Indian Penal Code. Remaining accused Devinder Kumar, Gurprit Singh, Ajay Kumar and Ravi Kumar were acquitted by the learned trial Court of the charges framed against them.

Cr. Appeal No. 466 of 2012

2. The instant appeal has arisen against the impugned judgment rendered on 29.6.2012, by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Sirmaur District at Nahan, Himachal Pradesh in Sessions trial No. 7-N/7 of 2011, whereby, the learned trial Court acquitted the accused Devinder, Gurpreet, Ajay Kumar and Ravi Kumar for the charges framed against them as also acquitted all the accused for theirs having allegedly committed offences punishable under Sections 148 and 149 of Indian Penal Code.

Cr. Appeal No. 349 of 2012 a/w connected matters

3. Brief facts of the case are that on 23.3.2011, reporter Naresh Kumar alongwith Kuldeep, Chetan, Sandeep, Jaswant, Narender, Shelli, Sunil, Anil and Sanju after visit to the fair at Paonta Sahib were returning to their house situated at village Hirpur. Kuldeep parked his motor bike at Maszid Gali. At about 8.30 p.m. Chetan, Kuldeep and Shelly were about to leave to their home, all of a sudden, accused Sumit Bhardwaj alias Tota alongwith other co-accused had appeared on the spot. They were armed with knives. Accused Sumit at once pounced upon Shelli near Maszid wali gali and attacked with knife. When Chetan and Kuldeep has started rescuing shelli from the clutches of accused Sumit, then accused Nitish stabbed Chetan on his abdomen. Thereafter, Sumit Bhardwaj and others hit Sanju on his body, he collapsed on the spot. Accused Sumit Bhardwaj and others had intercepted Sunil and Anil and stabbed them with knife. The injured were then removed by the local residents to the Civil Hospital, Paonta Sahib. Naresh Kumar reporter had come to know that Sunil, Anil and Sanju had succumbed to their injuries. The police reached Civil Hospital, Paonta Sahib on receipt of telephonic information and had recorded statement of Naresh Kumar, which was endorsed to police station, Paonta Sahib for acknowledgment of crime. After registration of the case, the investigation was carried out. After fulfillment of codal formalities, the autopsy of deceased sunil Kumar was conducted by the Medical Board, which had revealed that he had died of stab wound on left side of chest which damaged his left lung and heart and the death was immediate. The postmortem examination of the dead body of deceased Anil Kumar was conducted by the Medical Board and they opined that deceased probably died of sharp long instrument which injured his left lung and left side heard and death was immediate. Postmortem of deceased Sanjeev Kumar had revealed per opinion of Medical Board the deceased had died of multiple stab wound which injured left lung, heart and right kidney. Death was immediate. During the course of investigation, MLRs of injured Chetan and Shallender were collected from Herbertpur Christian Hospital, District Dehradun, in which it was opined that there was penetrating injury left side of abdominal wall and nature of the injury was grievous. The accused persons