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IN THE HIGH COURT OF ALLAHABAD
Arvind Kumar Mishra-I, Gautam Chowdhary, JJ.
Vijai Pal Singh - Appellants
Vs.
State of U.P. - Respondent
Criminal Appeal No. 1033 of 1986
Decided On : 27-02-2020
Indian Penal Code - Section – 309/ 324/ 302/ 307 – Offence of murder – Injury – First Information Report - Gunshot - There was one empty cartridge entangled in chamber of rifle and there was one live cartridge in the magazine. Apart from that live cartridges were recovered from the belt of along with 10 chargers. 3 empty cartridges were found from the verandah - All these articles were deposited at police station and request was made for lodging the report - Written report is whereas Check F.I.R. is a case was registered at aforesaid case crime number against appellant in relevant G.D. of aforesaid date and time at aforesaid police station
Finding of the court :To claim that patient/deceased was not in fit mental and physical condition to give any statement would not, in the absence of any supporting material give advantage to accused because fitness certificate prior to and subsequently to recording of statement by was given by and who remained present throughout the period when the statement was being recorded. Recording of the statement commenced and the process was completed within seven minutes - Extract of statement proved as and loses significance in view of the statement of the deceased himself as to how it all occurred - Assuming it to be that the version of the appellant is correct on point that he was shot by Head Constable when he had gone to the to wake up Constable had it been so then the theory of sound of one fire being made in the night intervening goes into oblivion, for the reason that no two shots have been fired at that point of time and sound of one and only one fire was heard by witnesses - It being so claim of accused that he was shot by Head Constable itself stands falsified and cannot be accepted by us - In view of above scrutiny of evidence and analogy of facts and circumstances of this case, obviously it cannot be said that charges have not been proved beyond reasonable doubt against accused and that trial court erred while it recorded finding of conviction against accused under Sections - 302, 324 and 309 I.P.C. and imposed the sentence on him –
Result :Appeal is dismissed
ORDER :
1. This appeal has been preferred by the appellant - Vijai Pal Singh, son of Sri Babu Singh against the judgment and order of conviction dated 10.03.1986, passed by the Sessions Judge, Etawah in Sessions Trial No. 255 of 1984 (State vs. Vijai Pal Singh), arising out of Case Crime No. 45 of 1984, under Sections - 302, 307, 324 and 309 I.P.C., Police Station - Barhpura, District - Etawah, whereby the appellant was convicted under the aforesaid sections and was sentenced to life imprisonment under Section 302 I.P.C.; three years' rigorous imprisonment under Section - 324 I.P.C.; and one year rigorous imprisonment under Section - 309 I.P.C.
2. All these sentences were directed to run concurrently.
3. In the same trial, accused was found not guilty under Section - 307 I.P.C. and was acquitted of the charge.
4. Factual chronology of the case, culminating into lodging of the F.I.R. by informant Chhotey Singh (P.W. 1), on 23.06.1984 at 01.55 a.m., at Police Station - Barhpura, District - Etawah, at Case Crime No. 45 of 1984, under Sections - 307, 309 I.P.C., was that the informant was a Company Hawaldar of 37 Batallion P.A.C. and was posted as such at Police Station - Barhpura. Today i.e. on the date of occurrence (23.06.1984), Constable/P.A.C. 19520 - Vijai Pal Singh was on Sentry duty at the said police station from 11:00 p.m. (to be precise 22.06.1984) to 01:00 a.m. (on 26.06.1984) in the night intervening 22/23.06.1984 and his duty was to be followed by another Sentry Constable - 20185 Arun Kumar, whose duty was to run from 01:00 a.m. to 03:00 a.m. on 23.06.1984. Neither did Constable Vijai Pal Singh wake up/report the informant after his duty was over, nor did he wake up Constable Arun Kumar for taking on his duty (after 1:00 a.m. in the night). It was around 01:30 a.m. (in the night intervening 22/23.06.1984) when a sound of fire was heard. This awakened the informant as well as the other personnel of the force. Vijai Pal Singh was sighted running towards the office of the police station with rifle and he was chased by the informant (Chhotey Singh), Constable 20251 Shanker Bux, Constable 19596 Siddh Nath Rai. Constable 19766 Bhai Lal Yadav and Sentry of the Police Station - C/C.P. 294 Ramesh Singh and Constable 119 Devi Prasad, who were holding torches in their hands. Suddenly, Vijai Pal Singh pointed his rifle towards them and fired two shots on the informant and others, with intention to kill, from the verandah of the office of police station, but the informant and others, escaped unhurt as the bullet missed target and did not hit them. In the meanwhile, Constable Bhai Lal Yadav moved ahead to overpower Vijai Pal Singh, when he effected blow by bannet of his rifle on the back of Bhai Lal Yadav and caused injury to him and entered into the male lockup and confined himself there in the male lock up of the police station, and tried to commit suicide by shooting himself with his rifle on his abdomen. Consequently, he fell down in the lock up. When the informant and others also rushed to the well of the police station, they found Constable Rama Shanker groaning in pain on account of gunshot injury on his stomach. F.I.R. also contains details about the background of this happening that on 21.06.1984, Constable Vijai Pal Singh had rebuked P.A.C./Constables in the barrack, including Constable Shanker Bux. When Rama Shanker objected to the rebuking, Vijay Pal Singh threatened him with dire consequences and on account of that animosity, he shot Rama Shanker with Rifle No. 38458 and Butt No. F632 along with bannet, which were recovered from Vijai Pal Singh. There was one empty cartridge entangled in the chamber of rifle and there was one live cartridge in the magazine. Apart from that, 45 live cartridges were recovered from the belt of Vijai Pal Singh along with 10 chargers. 3 empty cartridges were found from the verandah. All these articles were deposited at the police station and request was made for lodging the report. The written
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