JUDGMENT

Agarwala, J. - Pratap aged 45 and Bhairon aged 28 have been convicted u/s 302, I.P.C. and sentenced to death. They have also been convicted u/s 24 of the Cattle Trespass Act, and sentenced to six months' rigorous imprisonment. They appeal against their convictions and sentences. There is also before us the usual reference for the confirmation of the sentence of death.

2. The prosecution story was as follows. On the 28th February 1953, at about 10 a.m. Rajdhar, brother-in-law of Desraj, and Karan Singh, cousin of Desraj had gone to the field of Karan Singh for harvesting the crop. The field of Desraj adjointed the field of Karan Singh. Rajdhar noticed that eight bullocks were grazing the gram crop in the field of his brother in-law Desraj. Rajdhar rounded up those cattle and drove them towards the cattle pound at Kachwan Kalan. He had walked about a furlong with the cattle when all of a sudden eight persons, including the two Appellants and one Kukkan alias Sheocharan, appeared on the scene. They surrounded Rajdhar. Pratap Appellant was armed with a pharsa and Bhairon Appellant was armed with an axe, and the rest were armed with lathis. They prevented Rajdhar from taking the