IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CRIMINAL APPEAL (DB) No.7 of 2025 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-106 Year-2011 Thana- BAHADURGANJ District- Kishanganj ======================================================

Mangla Son of Bilta Resident of Village- Jhingakata, P.S.- Bahadurganj, Distt.- Kishanganj, Bihar ... ... Appellant Versus The State of Bihar ... ... Respondent ======================================================

Appearance :

For the Appellant : Mr. Prashant Kumar, Advocate Mr. Mayank Mohan, Advocate For the Respondent : Mr. Binod Bihari Singh, APP ======================================================

CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJEEV RANJAN PRASAD and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRAVEEN KUMAR

ORAL JUDGMENT

(Per: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRAVEEN KUMAR)

Date : 10-02-2026 Heard learned counsel for the appellant and learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State.

2. This appeal has been preferred on behalf of the appellant through Patna High Court Legal Services Committee challenging the judgment of conviction dated 17.02.2018 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘impugned judgment’) and the order of sentence dated 21.02.2018 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘impugned order’), passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge-I, Kishanganj (hereinafter referred to as the ‘learned trial court’), in Sessions Trial No. 1170/2011, arising out of Bahadurganj P.S. Case No. 106/2011, whereby the appellant has been convicted for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (in short ‘I.P.C.’) and has been ordered to undergo imprisonment for life and a fine of Rs. 10,000/-, and in default of payment of fine, he has been ordered to further undergo imprisonment for one year.

Prosecution Case: -

3. The prosecution story, in a nutshell, is that the fard-

beyan of Shamshun Nisha (PW 1), wife of late Mukhtar Alam, came to be recorded on 26.08.2011 at 10:30 A.M. at Md. Gulam Haider Tea Shop, Jhigakatta Hat, by the P.S.I. Bhanu Pratap Singh of Bahadurganj P.S. In the said fard-beyan, the informant has mainly stated that at 07:00 AM, while her husband Late Mukhtar Alam was sitting with his brother Md. Gulam Haidar @ Kailu (PW 3) at the tea-snacks stall of his brother, Mangla (the appellant) came at the shop and sat there and picked up an axe lying there and assaulted on the head of her husband by axe causing serious injuries on the head and as a result of the said injuries, her husband died at the spot. On hearing the hulla about the said killing, the people from surrounding caught hold of Mangla (the appellant) and thrashed him causing serious injuries to him. Thereafter, the police was informed and on arrival of the police, the appellant was handed over to them. The informant has claimed that the appellant has intentionally assaulted her husband leading to his death.

4. On the basis of the aforesaid fard-beyan given by informant (Shamsun Nisha), formal FIR came to be registered as Bahadurganj Police Station Case No.106 of 2011 on 26.08.2011 at 12:30 hours against sole accused (the appellant herein) for the offences under Sections 302 IPC.

5. After registration of the F.I.R., the accused-appellant was taken into custody and sent for treatment. The Investigating Agency carried out the investigation and, during the course of the investigation, the Investigating Officer recorded the statement of the witnesses and collected the necessary evidence. Prior to that inquest report was prepared on the spot and dead body of the deceased was sent for conducting the post mortem.

6. After completion of investigation, the Investigating Officer (I.O.) submitted charge-sheet being Charge-Sheet No. 148 of 2011 dated 31.08.2011 under Section 302 of the IPC.

7. On the basis of the police report, cognizance was taken under Section 302 IPC against the accused-appellant. As the case was exclusively triable by the Court of Sessions, the learned Magistrate committed the same to the Sessions Court under Section 209 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (in short ‘