IMPORTANT POINT
The court established that the reliability of eyewitness testimony is crucial for a conviction, and the absence of corroborative evidence, along with significant contradictions in the testimony, can lead to reasonable doubt, warranting acquittal.

JUDGMENT :

VINOD DIWAKAR, J.

1. Heard Shri Rajiv Lochan Shukla and Shri Pavan Kishore, learned counsel for the appellant, Shri C.L. Singh, learned A.G.A. for the State-respondent, and perused the material placed on record.

2. Upon completing the investigation [In Case Crime No.171 of 1978, u/s 302 read with section 34 IPC registered at P.S. Jani, District Meerut] the police filed the chargesheet against the accused-appellant Indra Pal, and co-accused Sohanvir. The accused-appellants were charged under Section 302 read with section 34 IPC, wherein, they denied the prosecution case and claimed trial.

3. The learned trial court vide impugned judgment and order dated 26.11.1980 convicted the accused-appellant Indra Pal and co-accused Sohanvir, and vide order dated 27.11.1980 sentenced them to undergo life imprisonment for the offenses under Section 302 read with Section 34 I.P.C. Aggrieved by the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence, the accused-appellants preferred the instant appeal before this Court.

4. The co-accused Sohanvir assailed the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence through separate Criminal Appeal bearing No. 2741 of 1980, who died on 5.11.2011 during the pendency of the appeal, and thus, the appeal No. 2741 of 1980 was dismissed as abated vide order dated 28.9.2021. The instant appeal bearing Criminal Appeal No. 2751 of 1980 qua accused-appellant, Indra Pal, is being heard and decided by this judgment. Needless to say, both the appeals have arisen out of the common impugned judgment.

5. The prosecution case, in brief, is that a written complaint was lodged at Police Station Jani, District Meerut, on 31.5.1978 at 08:00 a.m. regarding the incident took place at 02:30 a.m. in the village Jani, by one Chamel Singh- father of the deceased- with the allegation that he along with his son Karamvir (since deceased) and Vijendra Singh (PW-2) were sleeping in his Gher [A second home in the village builds for ordinarily male members of the family and cattle in rural India] where a lantern was burning on the Jamun tree. It was at around 02:30 a.m. the accused-appellants and another person scaled over the wall and barged into his Gher. Karamvir was shot dead, and on the noise of firing, Chamel Singh and Vijendra Singh woke up and saw the accused-appellants along with a third person, who was crossing the wall of the Gher and accused Sohanvir and Indra Pal were standing a few paces away from his deceased son carrying pistols in their hands. The accused-appellant, Indra Pal, and co-accused, Sohanvir, were identified by Chamel Singh.

6. The motive assigned in the Tehrir is that Sohanvir son of Bhopal had an illicit relations with one Smt. Prasandi, who was a cousin of the informant Chamel Singh, and Karamvir made an attempt to stop the illicit relations, therefore, accused-appellant executed the murder of Karamvir.

7. On receipt of the information, the police registered the F.I.R. and, after that, proceeded to the place of occurrence for further proceedings; S.I. A.K. Chaudhary prepared the inquest report, and the blood-stained pillow cover and lantern were taken into possession and seizure memo was thus prepared accordingly. The Station House Officer prepared the site plan and recorded the statement of witnesses. During the investigation, Sarwan Singh Yadav (PW-5), S.H.O., was transferred, and further investigation was entrusted to S.I. Ranvir Singh, who, upon receipt of the investigation, conducted the pending investigation and upon its completion filed the charge-sheet. The postmortem was conducted by Dr. G.N. Goel (PW-4) at P.L. Sharma Hospital, Meerut on 31.5.1978 at 04:45 p.m., and opined the cause of death was due to the gunshot injuries inflicted on the head of the deceased.

8. The prosecution examined five witnesses; PW-1 Jai Prakash is the witness to the inquest report; PW-2 Vijendra Singh is the solitary eyewitness of the case; PW-3 HC Madan Lal was posted as Moharrir at the Police Station and reco