AFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH, BILASPUR CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 1515 OF 2016 {Arising out of Judgment & Order dated 9.9.2016 passed by Special Judge (N.I.A. Act/Scheduled Crime), Bastar, Jagdalpur in Sessions Case No.26/2015}

[Judgment reserved on : 06.02.2024] [Judgment delivered on : 28.02.2024]

• Jayram Salam, S/o Late Chandal Singh Salam, aged about 25 years, R/o Kilam, Police Station Mardapal, District Kondaganv (C.G.)

... Appellant(s)

Versus • State of Chhattisgarh, through: Police Station Antagarh, District Kanker (C.G.)

... Respondent(s)

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For Appellant :- Mr. Shrawan Ku. Chandel, Advocate/Panel Lawyer appointed by Chhattisgarh High Court Legal Services Committee.

For Respondent/State :- Mr. Shaleen Singh Baghel, Dy. Government Advocate.

Amicus Curiae :- Vaibhav Shukla, Advocate.

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Division Bench Hon'ble Shri Justice Sanjay K. Agrawal Hon'ble Shri Justice Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal C A V Judgment Sanjay K. Agrawal, J.

1. Invoking criminal appellate jurisdiction of this Court, the present criminal appeal under Section 374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (in short, 'CrPC') has been filed by the Appellant Jayram Salam calling in question the legality, validity and correctness of the Judgment and Order dated 9.9.2016 passed by Special Judge (N.I.A. Act/Scheduled Crime), Bastar, Jagdalpur (in short, ‘Trial Court’) in Sessions Case No.26/2015, while acquitting the other two accused persons, namely – Sanjay Hurra and Ramdhar Dhurwa, for the offences punishable under Sections 148/149, 307/149, 121/149 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short, 'IPC') as well as under Sections 25(1A) and 27(2) of the Arms Act, 1959 (in short, ‘Arms Act’), has convicted the Appellant for the aforesaid offences and sentenced as under:-

2. Case of the prosecution, in a nutshell, is that on

13.8.2014 at about 10:00 a.m., near the pond, in the field of Mangal Singh Sori situated at Village Ghumsimunda, within the limits of Police Station Antagarh, the Appellant and the aforesaid two acquitted accused persons along with 28 other absconded accused persons, constituted an unlawful assembly armed with deadly and dangerous weapons to fulfill their unlawful object and opened fire on S.D.O.(P) Daulat Ram Porte (PW-2) and police party with automatic rifles and waged war against the Government of India, thereby committed the aforesaid offences.

3. Further case of the prosecution is that on 13.8.2014, the Station House Officer, Police Station Antagarh received a secret information from the Superintendent of Police, Kanker in respect of unlawful assembly of the Appellant and other acquitted and absconded accused persons, being naxalites, at Village Ghumsimunda, near the pond in the field of Mangal Singh Sori, to boycott to the Independence Day. On receiving the aforesaid information, a joint party of S.D.O.(P), Antagarh, B.S.F. and C.A.P.F. cordoned off the field of Mangal Singh Sori and while the joint party was moving forward from the western front, the Appellant and other acquitted