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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.309 OF 2009

The State of Maharashtra

….Appellant/Complainant

V/s.

1. Balasaheb Babasaheb Patil

Age : 29 years, R/o. Village – Halondi,

Taluka – Hatkanangale, District –

Kolhapur

2. Tatyasaheb Babasaheb Patil

Age : 26 years, R/o. Village – Halondi,

Taluka – Hatkanangale, District –

Kolhapur

3. Babasaheb Payagonda Patil

Age : 56 years, R/o. Village – Halondi,

Taluka – Hatkanangale, District –

Kolhapur

4. Pradeep Bhimgonda Patil

Age : 26 years, R/o. Village – Halondi,

Taluka – Hatkanangale, District –

Kolhapur

.….Respondents/accused

----

Mrs. Anamika Malhotra, APP for State – Appellant.

None for respondents.

----

CORAM : K.R.SHRIRAM, J.

DATE : 22^nd JANUARY 2021

ORAL JUDGMENT :

1

This is an appeal impugning an order and judgment dated

9^th May 2008 passed by the Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge, Ichalkaranji,

acquitting respondents (accused) of offences punishable under Sections

324 (Voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means),

323 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (Intentional insult with

intent to provoke breach of the peace) read with Section 34 (Acts done by

Gauri Gaekwad

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several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal

Code (IPC).

2

The accused are charged with causing hurt by dangerous

weapons which included scythe so also intentional insult. It is alleged that

on 1^st January 2003 at about 7.30 p.m. in front of the house of one Sunil

Patil, who has not been examined, the accused in furtherance of common

intention voluntarily caused hurt to complainant Mahavir Shamu Shete

(PW-5) and other prosecution witnesses Prakash Shete (PW-3), Babaso

Sukumar Patil (PW-4) and Pradeep Shamu Shete (PW-2) with dangerous

weapons likely to cause death of complainant and others and also caused

simple hurt to these witnesses and intentionally insulted them and provoked

them to commit breach of peace.

3

It seems complainant (PW-5) and prosecution witnesses, viz.,

PW-2 to PW-4, are all residing at Kumbhar Lane, Halondi. The accused also

lived in the same village. Complainant (PW-5) had laid down water pipe line

from Panchganga river for irrigating their agricultural land and the accused

and other villagers were also taking water from the said pipe line and all

were paying some charges to PW-5. According to prosecution, an amount of

Rs.5,000/- was due from accused no.3. Accused nos.1 and 2 are the sons of

accused no.3. As the charges were not being paid, on 31^st December 2002,

PW-2, who is the nephew of PW-5 complainant, went to the house of the

accused and demanded the arrears of water charges. PW-2 was abused and

driven away. The accused also denied that they owed any money to

Gauri Gaekwad

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complainant. PW-2 went home and narrated what happened. On 1^st January

2003 as the sugarcane cutting was in progress in the land belonging to

accused no.3, PW-2 happened to go there at which time accused no.1,

accused no.2 and accused no.4 manhandled him. When PW-2 went home

and narrated the incident, PW-3, PW-4 and PW-5 went to confront the

accused as to why they misbehaved with PW-2. On their way, in front of the

house of Sunil Patil, the accused intercepted them. The accused were holding

scythe, lathies and stone in their hands and all of a sudden they started

assaulting complainant (PW-5) and others. Who hit who with what has been

mentioned in the case of prosecution. Complainant (PW-5) lodged a

complaint at MIDC Police Station, Shiroli. A.P.I. Arun Waikar (PW-9) took

over the investigation. PW-9 was also investigating another case which the

accused had filed against complainant and the witnesses where complainant

and the witnesses were charged under Section 307 of IPC. Since that case

was pending before the Sessions Court, this case also came to be tried by the

Sessions Court alongwith the other case.

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