BEHERA, J.

( 1 ) THE appellants stand convicted under S. 302 read with S. 149 of the Penal Code ('the Code', for short) and sentenced thereunder to undergo imprisonment for life and in addition, each of them has been convicted under S. 148 of the Code and sentenced thereunder to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of one year with a direction that the sentences would run concurrently. All the appellants stood charged under Ss. 148, 302 read with Ss. 149 and 302 read with S. 34 of the Code. Besides, two of them, namely, Benguli alias Subarna Khuntia and Keshaba Behera, stood charged under S. 324 of the Code and the other appellants stood charged under S. 324 read with S. 149 of the Code.

( 2 ) THE appellants, it was alleged, belonging to a faction hostile to Saroj Baliar Singh (to be described hereinafter as 'the deceased') waylaid him, being armed with deadly weapons after nightfall on Aug. 20, 1980 at Khapuria crossing in the city of Cuttack, with the unlawful common object of committing his murder and attacked and dealt blows which ultimately resulted in his death in the hospital where the deceased had been sent by the Investigating Officer (P. W. 10) after taking up the