The court affirmed that credible eyewitness testimony can prevail over conflicting medical evidence unless the latter wholly undermines the former's reliability.

JUDGMENT :

Jasjit Singh Bedi, J.

This order shall dispose of two cases i.e. an appeal bearing No. CRA-D-426-DB-2004 titled as ‘Iqbal Singh versus State of Punjab’ and a revision petition bearing No.CRR-781-2005 titled as ‘Harsant Singh versus State of Punjab’ preferred against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 03/05.04.2004 passed by the Sessions Judge, Sangrur.

2. The instant FIR came to be registered on 18.03.2003. The accused-appellant came to be convicted vide judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 03/05.04.2004. The present appeal against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence was filed on 01.05.2004. The matter has come up for final hearing now after almost 22 years of the registration of the FIR.

3. The present case was registered on the statement Ex.PE of Harsant Singh PW-3. His sister Ranjit Kaur was married to Sukhjinder Singh now deceased, while accused Iqbal Singh was the real nephew of deceased. On 06.05.1996, they separated from each other and also separated their houses, cattle, land and other agricultural implements with the intervention of Piara Singh/PW-9 and other respectables and a writing (copy Ex.PO) to that effect was prepared. In that partition, six acres of land was given to Surjit Kaur, mother of Sukhjinder Singh for her maintenance. She was residing with him and, therefore, land of her share remained with Sukhjinder Singh. The accused was upset because of this and there used to remain a dispute between accused and deceased. Their houses were adjoining each other having one common gate besides each having a separate gate as well.

4. He (Harsant Singh), came to village Sheron on 18.03.2003 for getting the said dispute settled. At about 7.00 p.m., when he (Harsant Singh) and his brother-in-law Sukhjinder Singh were to go out for a stroll, Nirbhey Singh/PW-4 met them on the outer gate of house. Harsant Singh and Nirbhey Singh started chatting while Sukhjinder Singh turned to close the door of the gate. Meanwhile, they heard a lalkara of accused-Iqbal Singh who stated that Sukhjinder Singh would not be left capable of tilling the land. Hearing the lalkara, they saw accused-Iqbal Singh armed with .12 bore gun aiming at Sukhjinder Singh. Within their sight, Iqbal Singh accused fired a shot at Sukhjinder Singh, which hit him below his right eye. Sukhjinder Singh fell down. When the accused was about to fire the second shot, they (Nirbhey Singh and Harsant Singh) raised a raula. The accused fired the second shot at them but they escaped. The accused reloaded the gun and fled away from there with the gun raising lalkaras. Some other persons of the village came there hearing the sound of the gunshot. They removed Sukhjinder Singh in a car to Civil Hospital, Sunam but Dr Baldev Singh/PW-5 declared him brought dead.

5. Dr Baldev Singh Sahota/PW-5 sent ruqa Ex.PF to the SHO of Police Station Sunam about bringing of a dead person to the hospital, upon which SHO Sukhdev Singh/PW-12 reached Civil Hospital, Sunam and he recorded the statement Ex.PF of Harsant Singh correctly, made his own endorsement on it and sent it to the Police Station, Sunam, on which basis the instant case was registered. He took up the investigation and prepared the inquest report Ex.PC on the dead-body of Sukhjinder Singh and recorded statements of the witnesses under section 175 Cr.P.C. He deputed HC Pardeep Kumar for getting the post-mortem examination done. He along with other police officials and Harsant Singh reached the spot, inspected