The reliability of eyewitness testimony, corroborating evidence, and the recovery of murder weapons are crucial in establishing guilt in a murder case.

( 1 ) BALDEO and Mangal Singh have preferred this appeal against their conviction under Section 302/34,i. P. C. The judgment of conviction was passed by the then Sections Judge, Hamirpur on 6-6-1981 in Sessions Trial No. 285 of 1980 and the accused appellants have been sentenced to life imprisonment.

( 2 ) DURING pendency of the appeal, appellant Baldeo died. The appeal was ordered to be abated against him on 18-11-2003.

( 3 ) APPELLANT Baldeo, since dead, was the father of surviving appellant Mangal Singh. The deceased of this case is Nathua. The deceased was brought up by his maternal uncle PW 2 Baij Nath. The deceased was married to Smt. Putti PW 1. The deceased along with his wife Smt. Putti lived in village Kul Pahar district Hamirpur. When nathua became adult he demanded back his 40-45 Blghas land from appellant Baldeo who was his uncle. Baldeo refused to give back the land, whereupon Nathua instituted a case in which he won. Thereafter, Nathua again demanded the land, whereupon baldeo asked him to wait for one year since he had to marry his daughter. Baldeo further told that after the marriage of his daughter he would leave the land. The fact that Nathua lived with his maternal uncle baij Nath, was brought up by him and was married to Smt. Putti has been admitted by the defence. The fact of litigation regarding the land has also been admitted. However, baldeo, stated that he had preferred an appeal in which stay was granted.

( 4 ) ON 16-6-1980 Nathua at about 9 a. m. went to Haar for ploughing his field: He had hired Ram Charan, Brij Bihari PW 7 and persu PW 8 for the said purpose. Persu had bullocks with him and Nathua had asked his wife Smt. Putti to bring breakfast for him at the Haar. Smt. Putti started with the break fast along with Baji Nath PW 2. When they reached near Khalihan of Baldeo they saw that Baldeo and Mangal Singh were abusing Nathua. Baldeo was stopping Nathua from ploughing the field. Thereupon Nathua took the bullocks of Persu and said that he himself would plough the field and also started ploughing. Thereupon Mangal Singh appellant with Kholia and Baldeo having axe with him reached near Nathua and started assaulting him. The deceased left the plough and ran. Mangal Singh chased Nathua and struck Khaulia on his head. Nathua fell down whereafter Baldeo assaulted him by axe on his neck. On the alarm raised by Smt. Putti and Baij Nath the two accused ran away: Smt. Putti found that her husband nathua had died and blood had fallen at that place. Baij Nath was left near the dead body. Smt. Putti went to police station Kulkar and lodged oral report at 9. 45 a. m. on 16-6-1980. P. W. 9 Shyam Pal Singh was present at the police station. He took up the investigation and went to the place of occurrence. He prepared inquest of the dead body of deceased nathua and recovered blood stained earth and also arrested the two accused. The accused were interrogated and on the pointing put of Baldeo axe was recovered from the Khalihan on 16-6-1980 at 6. 45 p. m. On the pointing out of accused Mangal Singh khaulia was recovered from the room built in Khalihan. The recovery was made in the presence of Prabhu P. W. 5 and Din Dayal. He sent the dead body of the deceased for postmortem examination. P. W. 3 Dr. Ghan shyam Pandey conducted postmortem examination on 17-6-1980 at 1. 30 p. m. The doctor found following ante mortem injuries on the person of the deceased :

1. Incised wound 13 cm x 6 cm x bone deep in posterior side of neck 3 cm x 7 cm below and behind right and left ear respectively. Carotid vessels stnomastoid muscle cut with com-munited fracture and laceration of 4th, 5th, 6th cervical vertebrae and spinal cord underneath. There is profujse haemorrhage. The wound is V shaped whose lines converge at the cervical vertebral line, the angle between the lines being 135 approx.

2. Lacerated wound 5 cm x 1 cm x muscle deep in Right front parietal line.

3. Lacerated wound 4 cm x 1 cm x muscle deep i