Case Note & Summary
The Supreme Court dismissed two criminal appeals arising from a common judgment of the Rajasthan High Court, which had affirmed the conviction of the appellants under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC for the murder of Lakhan. The incident occurred on 17 September 1999 in the main market of Bayana, where the deceased, a sanitation inspector, was surrounded by a group of armed persons. According to the prosecution, appellant Pintoo @ Kamal Kishore (A-1) and Kalua @ Koshal Kishore (A-5) fired in the air to create terror, while Susya @ Lokesh (A-4) fired a country-made gun (katta) at Lakhan, hitting him in the abdomen. Lakhan succumbed to his injuries in the hospital. The Trial Court convicted the three appellants and acquitted three other accused. The High Court upheld the conviction. Before the Supreme Court, the appellants argued that the acquittal of co-accused Dinesh and Satish indicated false implication, that eyewitness Prem Shankar (PW-9) was a convicted murderer and thus unreliable, and that the non-recovery of the weapon from Susya @ Lokesh weakened the prosecution case. The Supreme Court rejected these arguments, holding that the concurrent findings of fact by the lower courts were based on credible eyewitness testimony from Prem Shankar (PW-9) and Rakesh (PW-12), who were natural witnesses present at the scene. The Court noted that the Trial Court had correctly applied the principle of separating grain from chaff, and the acquittal of some accused did not undermine the case against the appellants. Regarding Prem Shankar's credibility, the Court observed that his conviction in another case occurred after the present incident and did not affect his testimony. The non-recovery of the weapon was held not to be fatal to the prosecution case. The appeals were dismissed, and the appellants were granted liberty to approach the competent authority for remission of sentence.
Headnote
A) Criminal Law - Murder - Section 302/34 IPC - Eyewitness Testimony - Concurrent findings of fact by Trial Court and High Court based on credible eyewitnesses Prem Shankar (PW-9) and Rakesh (PW-12) were upheld by the Supreme Court. The Court held that the evidence of natural witnesses, who were present in the market and witnessed the occurrence, was cogent and consistent, establishing the guilt of the appellants. (Paras 6-10) B) Criminal Law - False Implication - Acquittal of Co-Accused - The argument that false implication of some accused (Dinesh and Satish) casts doubt on the appellants' complicity was rejected. The Trial Court held that grain can be separated from chaff, and the acquittal of co-accused does not affect the prosecution case against the appellants. (Paras 5, 7) C) Criminal Law - Credibility of Witness - Previous Conviction - The fact that eyewitness Prem Shankar (PW-9) was convicted in another murder case does not affect his credibility as a witness in the present case, as the incident occurred prior to his conviction. (Para 8) D) Criminal Law - Non-Recovery of Weapon - The non-recovery of the country-made gun (katta) from appellant Susya @ Lokesh (A-4) does not materially affect the prosecution case, as the eyewitness testimony and other evidence were sufficient to prove guilt. (Para 9)
Issue of Consideration
Whether the conviction of the appellants under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC is sustainable based on the evidence of eyewitnesses, despite the acquittal of some co-accused and non-recovery of the weapon from one appellant.
Final Decision
The Supreme Court dismissed both criminal appeals, affirming the conviction of the appellants under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC and the sentence of life imprisonment. The Court granted liberty to the appellants to approach the competent authority for remission of sentence.
Law Points
- Concurrent findings of fact
- credibility of eyewitness
- false implication of co-accused
- non-recovery of weapon
- separation of grain from chaff
