IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Date of Decision: 07.07.2025 GURJIT SINGH & OTHERS .. Appellants Versus STATE OF PUNJAB ...Respondent CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE GURVINDER SINGH GILL HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE JASJIT SINGH BEDI Present: Mr. Karambir Singh Kahlon, Advocate with Ms. Manveen Kahlon, Advocate for the appellants.

Mr. Siddharth Attri, Asstt. A.G. Punjab.

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JASJIT SINGH BEDI, J.

The present appeal has been filed against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 20.12.2003 passed by the Addl.

Sessions Judge, Gurdaspur.

2. The FIR was registered on 05.05.2001, the judgment of conviction and order of sentence passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, Gurdaspur is dated 20.12.2003, the appeal was filed on 23.01.2004 and the matter is being taken up for hearing now i.e. after a period of more than 24 years from the date of registration of the FIR.

3. Briefly stated the case of the prosecution is that on 05.05.2001 at about 9:00 a.m. SI Swaran Singh (PW4), P.S. Ghoman alongwith SI Arbinder Singh, ASI Surjit Singh, H.C. Gurinder Kumar No.1611, H.C. Palwinder Singh No.2188, C. Davinder Singh No.2680, C. Rachhpal Singh No.3188 C.

Madan Lal No.2590 were present on the bridge of a minor in the area of village Pandori near Gurdwara Tapiala Sahib. SI Swaran Singh received secret information that a land dispute was pending between Gurjit Singh and Amarjit Singh sons of Sardara Singh jats residents of village Padde in the Court of Shri Sanjiv Joshi PCS, Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Batala. Gurjit Singh S/o Sardar Singh, jat or village Padde now at Baba Bakala and Dalbir Singh son of Shangara Singh, Jat of village Padde alongwith 2/3 more unidentified persons were present on the bridge of a minor in the area of village Pandori having .12 bore gun and a scooter. Amarjit Singh, deceased son of Sardar Singh, jat of village Padde, who was a resident of village Ghuman was to appear in a Court at Batala and it was possible that Gurjit Singh accused and others would cause physical harm to Amarjit Singh, deceased. At this, SI Swaran Singh alongwith the police party reached on the bridge of a minor in the area of village Pandori and saw the dead body of Amarjit Singh lying on the left side of the bridge of the minor in a pool of blood. There were gun shot injuries on his right thigh, left eye and other parts of the body. On the right side of the bank of the minor, the dead body of his wife Jagir Kaur was lying in a pool of blood having gun shot injuries on her left ear and the jaw and also on the right side of her chest. The murder of Amarjit Singh and Jagir Kaur had been committed by the accused Gurjit Singh and Dalbir Singh alongwith 2/3 unidentified persons with their common intention. On the basis of the secret information, ruqa Ex. PL was sent to the Police Station, Ghoman for registration of the case on the basis of which the present case FIR was registered against the accused.

4. The case of the prosecution further is that PW2-Surjit Singh brother of Jagir Kaur, deceased had come to meet them at village Ghoman on

04.05.2001. The deceased Amarjit Singh told PW Surjit Singh that he was to appear in a court on the next day and Amarjit Singh, deceased also requested Surjit Singh to accompany him. On 05.05.2001 PW Surjit Singh was asked by Amarjit Singh to follow them on a bicycle. Jagir Kaur and Amarjit Singh went on a scooter to appear at Batala in a Court. PW Surjit Singh went on a bicycle and he left his bicycle at the bus stand of village Udhanwal from where he was to board a bus. When he reached on the canal bridge of village Attepur at 8:30 a.m. He had seen that accused Gurjit Singh and his companions were concealing behind a pipal tree. At that time Amarjit Singh and Jagir Kaur came thereon a scooter but were intercepted by the accused. Accused Gurjit Singh fired a gun shot at Amarjit Singh, who fell on the ground. Jagir Kaur tried to run away but was over-powered by the accused and accused Dalbir Singh caught hol