JUDGMENT :

R. SAKTHIVEL, J.

Prayer: Criminal Appeal filed under Section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, praying to call for the records relating to the proceedings in Special Sessions Case No. 196 of 2015 on the file of the learned Sessions Judge, Special Court for Exclusive Trial of Cases Registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, Villupuram and set aside the order of conviction dated December 9th, 2016 and set the appellants at liberty.

1. This Criminal Appeal is preferred by the appellants assailing the 'judgment dated December 9th, 2016, in Special Sessions Case No. 196 of 2015' (henceforth 'impugned judgment' for the sake of brevity) passed by the 'learned Sessions Judge, Special Court for Exclusive Trial of Cases Registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, Villupuram' (henceforth 'Trial Court' for the sake of brevity) in which, they were convicted and sentenced as follows: