IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA

CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No.681 of 2018

Arising Out of PS. Case No.-12 Year-2016 Thana- NOWKOTHI GARHPURA District-

Begusarai

======================================================

Parwati Devi @ Paro Devi W/o Rameshwar Mahto resident of Village- Pir

Nagar, P.S. Naokothi, District- Begusarai.

... ... Appellant/s

Versus

The State Of Bihar

... ... Respondent/s

======================================================

with

CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No. 688 of 2018

Arising Out of PS. Case No.-12 Year-2016 Thana- NOWKOTHI GARHPURA District-

Begusarai

======================================================

Prince Kumar Mahto @ Prince Kumar S/o Rameshwar Mahto, R/o Vill. Pir

Nagar, P.S.- Naokothi, District- Begusarai.

... ... Appellant/s

Versus

The State Of Bihar

... ... Respondent/s

======================================================

with

CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No. 690 of 2018

Arising Out of PS. Case No.-12 Year-2016 Thana- NOWKOTHI GARHPURA District-

Begusarai

======================================================

Rameshwar Mahto S/o Late Shibu Mahto, resident of Village- Pir Nagar, P.S.

Naokothi, District- Begusarai.

... ... Appellant/s

Versus

Patna High Court CR. APP (DB) No.681 of 2018 dt.11-10-2023

2/25

The State Of Bihar

... ... Respondent/s

======================================================

Appearance :

(In CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No. 681 of 2018)

For the Appellant/s

:

Mr. Ajay Kumar Thakur, Advocate

Mr. Rajkumar Rajesh, Advocate

For the State

:

Smt. Usha Kumari No-1, APP

For the informant

:

Mr. Jai Prakash Singh, Advocate

(In CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No. 688 of 2018)

For the Appellant/s

:

Mr. Ajay Kumar Thakur, Advocate

Mr. Pushpendra Kumar Singh, Advocate

For the State

:

Mr. Sadanand Paswan, APP

For the informant

:

Mr. Jai Prakash Singh, Advocate

(In CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No. 690 of 2018)

For the Appellant/s

:

Mr. Ajay Kumar Thakur, Advocate

Mrs. Kiran Kumari, Advocate

Mr. Md. Imteyaz Ahmad, Advocate

Mr. Ritwik Thakur, Advocate

Mrs. Vaishnavi Singh, Advocate

For the State

:

Mr. Sadanand Paswan, APP

For the informant

:

Mr. Jai Prakash Singh, Advocate

======================================================

CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE VIPUL M. PANCHOLI

and

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE CHANDRA SHEKHAR JHA

ORAL JUDGMENT

(Per: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE VIPUL M. PANCHOLI)

Date : 11-10-2023

The present appeals have been filed by the concerned

appellants-convicts under Section 374(2) of the Code of Criminal

Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred as the ‘Code’) against

impugned judgment of conviction dated 06.04.2018 and order of

sentence dated 09.04.2018 passed by learned Special Judge

S.C./S.T. (POA) Act, Begusarai in connection with Naokothi P.S.

Case No. 12 of 2016, whereby the concerned Trial Court has

convicted the present appellants for the offences punishable under

Patna High Court CR. APP (DB) No.681 of 2018 dt.11-10-2023

3/25

Sections 302/34, 120B of the I.P.C., under Section 27 of the Arms

Act and under Section 3(2)(v) of S.C./S.T. Prevention of Atrocities

Act.

2. The factual matrix of the present case is as under:-

“On 27.02.2016, at about 09:00 a.m. in the morning,

Swati Kumari @ Krishna Kumari aged about 27 years, daughter of

the informant Harilal Paswan (a teacher in an upgraded Middle

School, Pir Nagar, Gamaharia) went to the school at 09:00 a.m.

on 27.02.2016. The same day, at about 01:30 p.m., Swati

Kumari was coming back to her home from the school. She was

shot dead by the unknown miscreants who were boarded on a

motorcycle in front of the house of Rampravesh Paswan. It is said

that on hulla, the informant reached at the place of incident and

found her daughter lying dead on the road with firearm injuries on

her right ear, left jaw, left hand and on her rib cage. He asked the

people of the locality regarding the occurrence but could not get

a