Judgment

BHAGWATI, J. :- The appellants were tried before the Additional Sessions Judge, Sagar for the offence under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code. The charge against the appellants was that they intentionally caused the death of one Mulla Singh inflicting injuries on him with Kulhari and lathis. There were three eye-witnesses to the incident, but out of them only two were examined, namely, Mangal Singh and Kallo Singh. Kallo Singh was the son of the deceased while Mangal Singh was his nephew. Mangal Singh turned hostile and was allowed to be cross-examined by the prosecution. Kallo Singh, however, supported the prosecution case and in clear terms implicated the appellants in the commission of the offence. The prosecution also led the evidence of Phadali Singh, Jhurre Singh and Sante Kotwar for the purpose of proving the dying declaration made by the deceased to the effect that the appellants had assaulted him with Kulhari and lathis. This dying declaration was made by the deceased soon after the assault when these witnesses and others rushed to the scene of the offence in order to find out what had happened. The learned Additional Sessions Judge on the strength of the eviden