Judgment

A. P. SEN, J.:- Appellant Balwinder Singh@ Dalbir Singh@ Billa stands convicted under S. 302 read with S. 34, Penal Code, 1860, for having committed the murder of the taxi-driver Santokh Singh and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life. The other two co-accused Balwinder Singh and Amar Singh have also been convicted along with him under S. 302 read with S. 34 and sentenced to imprisonment for life, but have not preferred an appeal.

2. The prosecution case, in brief, is as follows. On July 25, 1973 as about 6 p.m. the appellant Balwinder Singh @ Billa came to the taxi-stand Kot Atma. Singh in Amritsar along with his three companions Balwinder Singh, Amar Singh and Balkar Singh and hired the taxi of the deceased Santokh Singh, an Ambassador car bearing No. PUA 5885 for going to Batala, some 32 miles away. The taxi was hired in the presence of the other taxi-drivers, namely, Kashmira Singh, brother of the deceased., P. W. 3, Fauza Singh, P. W 4 Suba Singh and Ajit Singh. The deceased Santokh Singh was not seen alive threafter. On the next morning, i.e., on 26th at about 5.15 a.m. Gurdarshan Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, P. W. 5, who had set an ambush on a road bypass near the town of Malerkotla, some 180 miles from Batala, intercepted the taxi No. PUA 5885 coming from the side of Ludhiana on suspicion of contrabands. The accused Balwinder Singh who was driving the taxi and the accused Amar Singh sitting by his side on the front seat were apprehended because they could not satisfy P. W. 5 about the ownership of the car. But their two companions sitting on the rear seat managed to escape and could not be identified due to darkness. From the taxi P. W. 5 recovered the driving licence of the deceased Santokh Singh with his photograph, registration certificate of the taxi and other related documents showing that the taxi belonged to the deceased Santokh Singh. On interrogation, he also seized from the accused Balwinder Singh a loaded country-made 1.2 bore pistol and a sandoz wrist-watch worn by him. At that stage it was not known that the deceased Santokh Singh had been murdered.

3. It is in the prosecution case that when the deceased Santokh Singh did not return on the night in question, his brother Kashmira Singh made a search for him at Batala and other places on the 26th but he could not find any trace. On the next day i.e. on the 27th he lodged the first information report at Police Station, Amritsar. In the report he stated that the taxi of his brother Santokh Singh had been taken on hire by the appellant Balwinder Singh @ Billa who was known to him from before, along with his three companions whom he did not know, but gave their general description. It also appears that on the 28th, the co-accused Balwinder Singh made a statement leading to the discovery of the dead body of the deceased Santokh Singh -SC352 from the Aliwal Canal on the 29th, at a place some eight miles from Batala and twenty-two miles from Amritsar. It was buried in the bed of the sand in the Aliwal Canal. The deceased Santokh Singh had apparently been strangulated to death by a ligature formed by the portion of a white turban twisted in the form of a rope with a knot tied around the neck. The green turban of the deceased was found stuck in the reeds at some distance. Some eight days thereafter, i.e., on August 2, 1973, on a tip-off Kala Singh, S. I. (CIA), P. W. 7 apprehended the appellant Balwinder Singh @ Billa and the accused Balkar Singh in the vicinity of the District Court at Amristar. They both refused to participate in the test identification parade.

4. There can be no doubt, nor is it disputed, that the deceased Santokh Singh met with a homicidal death. Dr. D. P. Kansal, Medical Officer, Civil Hospital, Batala, P. W. 1 who performed an autopsy of the dead body of the deceased was of the opinion that the death of the deceased was due to asphyxia caused by strangulation.

5. There is no direct evidence. The prosecution case rests on cir