iminal Appeal No 7 of 1972
Appeal by special Leave from the judgment and order dated 25 2 1971 of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Crl
Appeal No 103170
A N Mulla and R N Sachthey for the appellant
Nuruddin Ahmed and R L Kohli for the respondents
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by KHANNA J
Nine accused Jagir Singh 27 Baljit Singh 36 Karam Singh 30 Amarjit Singh 38 Atma Singh 27
Chsnan Singh 22 Tarlok Singh 19 Joginder Singh 22 and Swarn Singh 23 were tried in the court of Sessions Judge Gurdasnur in connection with an occurrence which took place on July 8 1948 in village Longowal Khurd
In the course of that occurrence Labh Singh 35 Joginder Singh 30 and Lakha Singh 25 received fatal in 329 juries
Injuries were also received by Ajit Singh Jarnail Singh Mohinder Singh and Harbans Singh PWs
Learned Sessions Judge convicted Jagir Singh and Baljit Singh under section 302 Indian Penal Code on two counts for causing the death of Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh deceased and sentenced them to death on each count
The said two accused were also convicted under section 302 read with section 34 Indian Penal Code in connection with the murder of Labh Singh and were sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life on that account
In addition to that the aforesaid two accused were convicted under section 307 Indian Penal Code on four counts for the injuries caused to Mohinder Singh Ajit Singh Jarnail Singh and Harbans Singh PWs and were sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of three years on each count
Karam Singh accused was convicted under section 302 Indian Penal Code for causing the death of Labh Singh deceased and was sentenced to death
In connection with the death of Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh Karam Singh was convicted under section 302 read with section 34 Indian Penal Code on two counts and was sentenced to undergo imprisonment for life
Karam Singh was in addition convicted under section 307 read with section 34 Indian Penal Code for injuries caused to Ajit Singh Jarnail Singh Mohinder Singh and Harbans Singh and was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of three years on each count
The remaining six accused were acquitted by the Sessions Judge
On appeal and reference the Punjab and Haryana High Court acquitted Jagir Singh Baljit Singh and Karam Singh by giving them the benefit of doubt
The State of Punjab has now come up in appeal to this Court by special leave against the judgment of the High Court acquitting the above mentioned three accused respondents
Out of the nine accused Karam Singh Amarjit Singh and Baljit Singh are brothers
Likewise Jagir Singh Joginder Singh and Tarlok Singh accused are brothers
Chanan Singh accused who is a constable in the Border Security Force add Swarn Singh accused too are brothers
Atma Singh accused is the maternal uncle of Jagir Singh
Amongst the three deceased persons Labh Singh and Joginder Singh were brothers
Chanan Singh PW 8 and Mohinder Singh PW 27 are the brothers of those two deceased persons
Harbans Singh PW 21  is brother of Lakha Singh deceased
The prosecution case is that the relations between the party of the accused and that of the deceased persons were strained for about 10 or 12 years before the occurrence and the two groups had since then been involved in a number of cross criminal cases
About two years before the occurrence Lakha Singh deceased along with some others had caused injuries to Atma Singh and Puran Singh uncle of Jagir Singh accused
A criminal case was on that account pending in
the court of Magistrate Batala
July 8 1968 was the date of hearing in that case and on that day Chanan Singh PW 8 accompanied Lakha Singh to the court at Batala for pursuing that case
After the proceedings of the case were over Chanan Singh PW 8 came back with Lakha Singh deceased to his house in village Longowal Khurd
Longowal Khurd is at a distance of about two and a half miles from Batala
The house of Labh Singh deceased was at a short distance from that 330 of Lakha Singh in Longowal Khurd
Chanan Singh PW 8 himself lived in Longowal Kalan which is at a distance of about two and a half furlongs from Longowal Khurd
When Chanan Singh PW 8 was still present at the house of Lakha Singh deceased it is stated they heard the noise of changars challenging shouts from near the house of Labh Singh deceased
Hearing the noise of changars Lakha Singh deceased and his brother Harbans Singh PW 21 went to the house of Labh Singh
Chanan Singh PW also followed them to the house
of Labk Singh
On arrival there Chanan Singh PW 8 found Labh Singh Joginder Singh and Lahha Singh deceased as well as Ajit Singh PW 19 Jarnail Singh PW 22 Mohinder Singh PW 27 Harbans Singh PW 21 Bawa Singh PW 25 and Chanan Singh PW 26 present in the courtyard of Labh Sigh s house
Joginder Kaufman wife of Labh Singh and Harbans Kaur wife of Bawa Singh too were present there
The nine accused are then stated to have come near the compound wall of the courtyard of Labh Singh s house
The compound wall was about sixand a half feet high from outside and four and a half feet high from inside because the courtyard was at a higher level than the ground outside
At the instigation of Tarlok Singh Atma Singh and Swarn Singh accused it is stated Jagir Singh and Baljit Singh accused threw one hand grenade each into the courtyard of Labh Singh s house
Both the hand grenades exploded in the courtyard as a result of which Labh Singh Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh deceased and Mohinder Singh Jarnail Singh Ajit Singh and Harbans Singh PWs received injuries
All the nine accused then came inside the courtyard of the house of Labh Singh deceased
Karam Singh and Amarjit Singh accused were armed with spears
Tarlok Singh Joginder Singh Atma Singh Chanan Singh and Swarn Singh accused had kirpans while Jagir Singh and Baljit Singh were empty handed
Karam Singh accused on arrival delivered a spear blow in the left flank of Labh Singh deceased
Amarjit Singh accused also gave a spear blow on the right arm of Labh accused dealt a kirpan blow on the nose of Harbans Singh PW while Chanan Singh accused gave a blow with his sheathed kirpan on the back of Mohinder Singh PW
Swarn Singh accused stepped towards Chanan Singh
PW 8 for attacking him with a kirpan whereupon Chanan Singh PW 8 took up a panda from the courtyard of Labh Singh and brandished it towards Swarn Singh
One blow with that danda was given on the left shoulder of Swarn Singh accused
Those present in the courtyard also raised alarm whereupon the nine accused ran away
Some water was then poured into the mouth of Labh Singh but he succumbed to the injuries received by Mm
Mohinder Singh and Harbans Singh PWs then brought a cart from the house of Charlie Singh PW 8
Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh deceased were laid an that cart
Chanan Singh PW 8 Harbans Singh Sarjan Singh and Mohinder Singh then took that cart to Batala hospital
When they arrived near the hospital Chanan Singh PW 8 went to police station Sadar Batala and lodged there report PA at 1115 pm 331 Sub Inspector Kehar Singh PW 30 then went to the hospital
Before doing so the Sub Inspector deputed two Assistant Sub Inspectors and four constables to proceed to the place of occurrence
Sub Inspector Kehar Singh found Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh present in the hospital
Their injuries were being examined by Dr N section Dhillon when the Sub Inspector arrived there
On the applications of the Sub Inspector Dr Dhillon made an endorsement that Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh were in fit condition to make statements
The Sub Inspector then deputed a head constable to call the magistrate having jurisdiction in the area
It was raining heavily at that time and as the magistrate did not arrive the Sub Inspector recorded the dying declarations of Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh in the presence of Dr Dhillon
The condition of Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh was found to be serious and so they were sent to V J Hospital Amritsar
Sub Inspector Kehar Singh then went from Batala hospital to the place of occurrence and reached there at 5 am
The Sub Inspector found the dead body of Labh Singh lying on a cot
The Sub Inspector prepared inquest report relating to the dead body of Labh Singh
Blood stained earth was taken into possession from three places in the courtyard of Labh Singh s house
The Sub Inspector also took into possession lever PI percussion cap P2 and four pieces of exploded hand grenade from the place of occurrence and put them into a sealed parcel
Injuries of Harbans Singh Ajit Singh and Jarnail Singh were examined by Dr N section Dhillon on July 9
Harbans Singh was found to have two lacerated wounds one on his right index finger and the other on the bridge of his nose
Both the injuries were grievous
Ajit Singh was found to have one punctured wound with averted lacerated margins on his right thigh while Jarnail Singh had one lacerated wound on the right side of his neck
The injuries of Ajit Singh and Jarnail Singh were found to be simple
Mohinder Singh was examined by Dr section P Mago on July 10 1968 and was found to have four simple injuries on his person
Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh who were sent to V J Hospital Amritsar succumbed to their injuries on July 10 and 11 1968 respectively
Post mortem examination on the dead bodies of Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh was performed by Dr Narinder Mohan on July 11 1968
The lever precussion cap and the other parts of the hand grenades which had been recovered from the place of occurrence were sent to PW 20 Shri J M John Senior Inspector of Explosives
Shri John expressed the opinion that the above articles were the remnants of an exploded hand grenade
At the trial the plea of the nine accused was denial simpliciter
Chanan Singh and Swarn Singh accused in the course of their statements  also added that they had heard changers on the night of occurrence at about 10 pm from the direction of guru dwarf
The explosion of a bomb was also heard at that time but these two accused did not stir out of their houses
Defence evidence was led on behalf of the accused
The purport of the defence evidence was that one 332 Bachan Singh had been admitted into Batala Hospital with multiple injuries on the night between July 8 and 9 1968
A metallic substance was thereafter recovered from the body of Bachan Singh on July 20 1968
Defence evidence was also led to show that Labh Singh deceased who was a bus driver of the Punjab Roadways was away to Pathankot at about 7 pm on the day of occurrence
Learned Sessions Judge found that the prosecution case against Joginder Singh Baljit Singh and Karam Singh accused had been proved beyond any shadow of doubt
He accepted the ocular evidence produced in the case
Reliance was however not placed upon the dying declarations of Lakha Singh and Joginder Singh
The remaining six accused were given the benefit of doubt and were acquitted
The High Court on appeal and reference acquitted Jagir Singh Baljit Singh and Karam Singh also by giving them the benefit of doubt for reasons which would be dealt with hereafter
In appeal before us Mr Mulla on behalf of the appellant state has argued that the High Court was in error in setting aside the conviction of the three accused respondents and the view taken by the High Court was manifestly unreasonable
As against that Mr Nuruddin on behalf of the respondents has canvassed for the correctness of the view taken by the High Court
There is in our opinion considerable force in the stand taken on behalf of the appellant
The evidence of Dr Dhillon who performed postmortem examination on the body of Labh Singh shows that there were five injuries on the body of the deceased
Out of them three could be caused with a hand grenade while two had been caused with a sharp pointed weapon
One of the last two mentioned injuries was a punctured incised wound on the back of the right forearm while the other injurywas as under  Punctured incised wound 1X34 with clean cut margins over 5th rib and 5th left intercostal space in mid axillary line with fracture of 5th rib puncture of left lung near the fissure went through the entire lung cross punctured the walls of left auricle haematoma over the lung and pleural cavity pleura punctured left side pericardium puncture
The above mentioned injury was sufficient in ordinary course of nature to cause death
The evidence of Dr Narinder Mohan who performed postmortem examination on the bodies of Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh shows that Joginder Singh had three lacerated wounds which could be caused with a hand grenade
Likewise Lakha Singh had two injuries which could be caused with a hand grenade
The following injury of Joginder Singh was sufficient in ordinary course of nature to cause death  A penetrating wound 1 12 roundish with lacerated margins 1  to the left of the mid epigastric line 3 above the umbilicus with omentum seen out of the wound
There was no charring of the margins
 333 In the case of Lakha Singh the fatal injury was in the abdominal cavity
Operation had been performed at the site of the injury in an attempt to save Lakha Singh
According to the prosecution case the hand grenade injuries to the three deceased persons and injured prosecution witnesses were caused by Jagir Singh and Baljit Singh accused when they threw the handgrenades in the courtyard of Labh Singh s house
It is further the case of the prosecution that the fatal punctured incised wound in mid axillary line of Labh Singh deceased was caused by Karam Singh accused when he gave the spear blow to Labh Singh deceased
The prosecution in support of the above allegations has examined Chanan Singh PW 9 Ajit Singh PW 19 Harbans Singh PW 21 Jarnail Singh PW 22 Bawa Singh PW 25 Chanan Singh so Sawan Singh PW 26 and Mohinder Singh PW 27 as eye witnesses of the occurrence
There appears in our opinion
to be no cogent ground as to why the evidence of the above mention ed witnesses
regarding the complicity of the accused respondents be not accepted
It is no doubt true as pointed out by Mr Nuruddin that these witnesses belong to the party of the deceased but that fact in our opinion would only make the court scrutinise the evidence of these witnesses more closely
If their evidence can stand that test as it does in the present case there is no reason why it should not be acted upon
Some of the witnesses are close relatives of the deceased persons and it is most difficult to believe that they would spare the real assailants and falsely mention the names of innocent persons as having caused the injuries to the deceased persons
Four of the eye witnesses namely Ajit Singh PW 19 liarbans Singh PW 21 Jarnail Singh PW 22 and Mohinder Singh PW 27 received injuries during the course of the present occurrence and there can be hardly any manner of doubt re garding their presence at the scene of occurrence
It is not possible to accept the contention that these witnesses in spite of the attack upon them and the three deceased persons failed to fix the identity of the assailants
Another fact of which note should be taken is that the first information report in this case was lodged at 1115 pm within a few hours of the occurrence
Although Mr Nuruddin has urged that there was delay in lodging the first information report we find it difficult to accept this submission
The occurrence according to the prosecution case took place at 715 pm
As a result of the occurrence Labh Singh died soon thereafter while Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh received serious injuries
In addition to that four prosecution witnesses also received injuries
It is plain that the prosecution witnesses must have got stunned because of the sudden occurrence in the course of which three of their close relatives received injuries which ultimately proved fatal and four others were also injured
Attempt was made to pour water into the mouth of Labh Singh deceased but Labh Singh died soon thereafter
It must have taken some time for Chanan Singh and others to get out of the state of shock and regain their composure 
They then arranged for a cart which was brought from Chanan Singh s house in Longowal Kalan
Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh were then laid in that cart and the same was taken to Batala at a distance of 334 two and a half miles
It cannot in the circumstances be said that the period of four hours which was taken in lodging the report at the police station was in any way inordinately long
The fact that the first information report was lodged at the time it Purports to have been done can also be not disputed because the first lnformation report was received by the magistrate having jurisdiction in the area at 1 am as is borne out by the endorsement of the magistrate on the report
The first information report lodged at the police station within a few hours of the occurrence contained all the material facts and in our opinion the first information report lends considerable corroboration to the ocular evidence adduced at the trial
The defence suggestion which was put in the cross examination of the prosecution witnesses was that a number of persons had Collected near the village gurudwara when a hand grenade exploded there and the three deceased persons and the prosecution witnesses received injuries
This suggestion in the circumstances of the case was in our opinion wholly unfounded
The evidence of Sub Inspector Kehar Singh shows that when he arrived at the scene of occurrence he found the different pieces of exploded hand grenade in the courtyard of the house of Labh Singh deceased
This fact would tend to show that the explosion had taken place in the courtyard and not at the gurudwar 
It is also not clear as to what advantage the prosecution would have derived in suppressing the actual place of occurrence and in mentioning a wrong place of occurrence
As would appear from the narration of facts only members of one party received injuries as a result of the explosion of hand grenade
If the hand grenade had exploded in a large gathering near the village gurudwara it is not likely that the splinters from the exploded hand grenade would hit the members of only one party and avoid those not belonging to that party
Labh Singh deceased at the time of the present occurrence was wearing only a kachha besides a parna on his head
It is not likely that Labh Singh would have gone in that state without a shirt to the gatliering near the village gurudwara
On the contrary the fact that Labh Singh was without a shirt points to the inference that the occurrence took place in the courtyard of his house
The High Court while rejecting the prosecution evidence referred to the fact that in one of the plans height of the outer wall of the courtyard of Labb Singh s house was mentioned to be 6 12 ft
while in the other it was mentioned to be 4 12 ft
This discrepancy has been explained by Bal Kishan Draftsman PW 9 whose evidence shows that the level of the courtyard of Labh Singh s house was higher than the ground outside
The height of the boundary wall consequently measured to be 6 12 ft from outside and 4 12 ft from inside
No question was put to the witness in cross examination and we can find no cogent reason as to why the evidence of Bal Kishan be not accepted
There could also in our opinion be no difficulty for those present inside the courtyard from seeing as to who were the persons who threw the hand grenades because a 41 ft high wall could not obstruct their view in fixing the identity of the culprits
335 Another circumstance which weighed with the High Court in rejecting the prosecution evidence was the nature of the injury on the nose of Harbans Singh PW 21
According to the evidence of the prosecution witnesses the above injury had been caused with a kirpan by Joginder Singh
The High Court took the view that the said injury had been caused by a hand grenade splinter
It was held that as the witnesses had deposed that the injury had been caused by a kirpan blow the evidence of the witnesses was not trustworthy
In this respect we find that the evidence of Dr Dhillon shows that he expressed the opinion in answer to a police query that the injury on the nose of Harbans Singh could have been caused with a kirpan
It is no doubt true that Dr Dhillon also expressed the opinion that the said injury could have been caused by a missile or other object but this fact would not necessarily show that the eye witnesses in this case have made false statements regarding the injury on the nose of Harbans Singh
In order to draw an inference about the falsity of the evidence of prosecution witnesses in this respect it is not enough to show that the injury on the nose of Harbans Singh could have been caused either with a kirpan or with a missile it is also necessary to rule out the Possibility of the said injury having been caused with a kirpan
The evidence of Dr Dhillon plainly does not rule out such a possibility
The High Court also appears to have been impressed by the defence version that Labh Singh deceased was present in Pathankot at about 7 pm on the day of occurrence
Reliance in this context was placed upon tile testimony of Radhey Sham DW 3 who was conductor of Bus PNP 6972 and who has deposed about Labh Singh having driven that bus to Pathankot on the day of occurrence and about that bus having reached Pathankot at 7 pm
We find it most difficult to accept this statement of Radhey Sham in the face of other evidence brought on the record and the surrounding circumstances of the case
Dalip Singh PW 11 is a yard master of Punjab Roadways depot at Pathankot
The evidence of this witness was given on the basis of the relevant records
According to this witness two drivers had been allotted for the bus in question and they were Labli Singh deceased and Piara Singh PW 12
Dalip Singh s testimony shows that on the day of occurrence it was Piara Singh who brought the bus in question to Pathankot at 7 pm
As the evidence of this witness is based upon the records  it is difficult to discard his testimony
The evidence of Dalip Singh gets corroboration from the testimony of Piara Singh who has deposed that when the said bus arrived at Batala at about 5 pm on the day of occurrence on its way from Amritsar to Pathankot the witness relieved Labh Singh deceased
Labh Singn then got down from the bus at Batala and the witness took it to Pathankot
Another witness who has been examined on the point is Yes Raj DW 2 who was the booking clerk of the Punjab Roadways office at Pathankot
According to this witness the advance way bill of the bus in question showed that its driver was Labh Singh when it left Amritsar for Pthankot
The witness however admitted that the entry in the way bill was made at the commencement of the journey
In the circumstances the evidence of the witness is quite consistent with Labh Singh having been relieved by Piara Singh at Batala
336 Labh Singh admittedly died during the course of this occurrence
Had he been at Batala at 7 pm on the day of occurrence it is not likely that he could have reached his village before 930 or 10 pm on the day of occurrence
It is in evidence that a bus takes two hours to travel from Pathankot to Batala
It is difficult to believe that a report about the occurrence at Longowal Khurd could have been lodged at Batala Sadar police station at 11 15 pm if in fact the occurrence had taken place after 930 or 10 pm
We are also not impressed by the reasoning that the occurrence took place at a late hour when it was not possible to fix the identity of the assailants
The case of the prosecution as mentioned earlier is that the occurrence took place at 715 pm
The sun set on the day of occurrence it 728 pm
There was full moon on July 9 and the occurrence took place a day earlier than that
As the occurrence took place before sun set there could in our opinion be no difficultly in fixing the identity of the assailants
Even if the occurrence had taken place after the sun set time there could still be no difficulty in finding out as to who the assailants were
A number of persons were present in the courtyard of Labh Singh s house
There is no suggestion that a lamp had been lighted at that time
The fact that a large number of persons were present in the courtyard without lighting a lamp would show that there was enough light at that time
It is also significant that the assailants gave two Barcha blows to Labh Singh de ceased
If there was enough light to enable the assailants to fix the identity of Labh Singh before they gave Barcha blows to him it stands to reason that the same light would be enough for others to see as to who the assailants were
We therefore have no hesitation in rejecting the argument that there was not enough light at the time of occurrence to enable the prosecution witnesses to fix identity of the culprits
Another factor which weighed with the High Court in discarding the prosecution evidence was that Bachan Singh DW 6 was admitted in Batala hospital a few minutes before Joginder Singh and Lakba Singh deceased were brought there
According to the testimony of Dr N section Dhillon a metallic foreign substance was recovered from the arm of Bachan Singh on July 20 1968
The High Court took the view that Bachan Singh too had been injured during the course of the present occurrence and the fact that no reference was made to Bachan Singh either in the first information report or in the evidence of the prosecution witnesses would go to show that the prosecution evidence is not worthy of credence
In this respect we find that Bachan Singh was examined as a defence witness
Bachan Singh in the course of his evidence denied being present at the scene of occurrence and having been injured at that time
According to Bachan Singh he had received an injury during the course of a dispute with his father
Piaro sister of Bachan Singh was also examined as DW 4
She too has denied that Bachan Singh was present at the time of the present occurrence
It is in our opinion not necessary to dilate upon the injury of Bachan Singh because even if it may be assumed that Bachan Singh too received an injury during the course of the present occurrence that 337 would not materially affect the substance of the prosecution evidence regarding the guilt of the three accused respondents
The learned judges of the High Court in rejecting the prosecution evidence have made observations critical about the magistrate who received the copy of the first information report as well as about Dr Dhillon Sub Inspector Kehar Singh and
the learned Sessions Judge
So far as the magistrate is concerned it observed that he was an irresponsible lazy officer as he could not reach the hospital at about 1 am on the night of occurrence in spite of heavy rain for recording the dying declarations of Joginder Singh and Lakha Singh
As regards Dr Dhillon the criticism leveled is that he expressed an opinion in answer to the query of the investigating officer that the injury on the nose of Harding Singh could be caused with a kirpan
It was observed that the doctor had gone out of the way to please the investigating officer
The doctor was also criticized for attesting the dying declarations
Regarding Sub Inspector Kehar Singh the High Court formed the impression that he was a domineering police officer because lie obtained opinion favorable to the prosecution from Dr Dhillon
It was also observed that the Sub Inspector had tried to be over clever
There was enough material available according to the High Court which could have been made better use of by a more imaginative officer without artificially or artfully advancing the time of occurrence to day time
As regards the learned Sessions Judge the High Court observed that the present marathon trial appeared to have strained his capacities to the maximum limits
The criticism leveled by the High Court against the above mentioned officers in our opinion was not warranted and was couched in language which was rather harsh
Perusal of the judgment of the High Court shows that in acquitting the accused respondents the High Court approached the entire matter in a spirit of distrust and suspicion of the various officers who dealt with this case
We further find that the judgment of the High Court is based upon conjectures surmises and suspicion
Looked at in the context of the facts of the case we find that the view taken by the High Court is manifestly unreasonable
It is consequently not possible to sustain the judgment of the High Court
A criminal trial is not like a fairy tale wherein one in free to give flight to one s imagination and phantasm
It concerns itself with the question as to whether the accused arraigned at the trial is guilty of the crime with which he is charged
Crime is an event in real life and is the product of interplay of different human emotions
In arriv ing at the conclusion about the guilt of the accused charged with the commission of a crime the court has to judge the evidence by the yardstick of probabilities its intrinsic worth and the animus of witnesses
Every case in the final analysis would have to depend upon  its own facts
Although the benefit of every reasonable doubt should be given to the accused the courts should not at the same time reject evidence which is ex facie trustworthy on grounds which are fanciful or in the nature of conjectures
The High Court in the present case in our opinion has rejected the prosecution evidence which was ex facie of a convincing nature 338 on grounds which partake of the nature of conjectures and surmises
The view taken by the High Court as already observed is manifestly unreasonable and has resulted in miscarriage of justice
We accordingly accept the appeal set aside the judgment of the High Court and convict the accused respondents for the offences for which they were convicted by the trial court
As regards the sentence for the offence under section 302 Indian Penal Code we find that a period of more than two years has elapsed since the acquittal of the accused respondents by the High Court
It would in the circumstances be appropriate if the extreme penalty for the offence under section 302 Indian Penal Code is not exacted from the accused respondents
We therefore sentence the accused respondents for the offence under section 302 Indian Penal Code to imprisonment for life
The sentences imposed upon the accused respondents for the offences under section 302 read with section 34 section 307 and section 307 read with section 34 Indian Penal Code are maintained
The sentences of each of the accused respondents would run concurrently VPS Appeal allowed


Summary:
The respondents were convicted of murder and sentenced to death
The High Court acquitted them in appeal
In appeal to this Court setting aside the acquittal HELD  1 A criminal trial is not like a fairy tale wherein one is free to give flight to one s imagination and phantasy
It concerns itself with the question as to whether the accused arraigned at the trial is guilty of the crime with which he is charged
Crime is an event in real life and is the product of interplay of different human emotions
In arriving at the conclusion about the guilt of the accused charged with the commission of a crime the court has to judge the evidence by the yardstick of probabilities its intrinsic worth and the animus of witnesses
Every case in the final analysis would have to depend upon its own facts
Although the benefit of every reasonable doubt should be given to the accused the courts should not at the same time reject evidence which is ex facie trustworthy on grounds which are fanciful or in the nature of conjectures
337F H In the present case the High Court has rejected the prosecution evidence which was ex facie of a convincing nature on grounds which partake of the nature of conjectures and surmises
The view taken by the High Court is manifestly unreasonable and has resulted in miscarriage of justice
A perusal of the judgment of the High Court shows that in acquitting the accused respondents the High Court approached the entire matter in a spirit of distrust and suspicion of the various officers who dealt with the case
337H 338B 2 The High Court while rejecting the prosecution evidence made unwarranted criticism couched in harsh language about the magistrate who received the copy of FIR the doctor the investigating officer and the Sessions Judge who tried the case
337E F 3 In view of the fact that more than two years had elapsed since the High Court acquitted the respondents it would be more appropriate to sentence the accused to imprisonment for life instead of to the extreme penalty
338B C