Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH. Lachhman Singh and another APPELLANTS VERSUS The State of Punjab RESPONDENT CORAM : HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE MEHTAB S.GILL HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE JORA SINGH Present:- Shri Manvinder Singh Sidhu, Advocate for the appellants. Shri Rajesh Bhardwaj, D.A.G. Punjab. MEHTAB S.GILL, J. This is an appeal against the judgment/order of the learned Sessions Judge, Bhatinda, whereby he convicted Lachhman Singh son of Bachan Singh and Atma Singh son of Mukhtiar Singh under Sections 302/34 I.PC. and sentenced them to undergo imprisonment for life and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to further undergo RI for three months. Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -2- The case of the prosecution is unfolded by the statement Ex.PK made by Jangir Singh PW-7, upon which the matter was reported to Major Singh SI that a dead-body eaten up by the animals was lying in the fields. This statement was made on 22.2.1997. On the basis of this statement an unclaimed dead-body was recovered by the police and it was cremated. On 27.2.1997 at 8.30 p.m. Amarjit Kaur wife of the deceased went to Police Station Dialpura along with Devinder Singh son of Kirpal Singh, Jagtar Singh son of Sarwan Singh, Gurdev Singh son of Thakar Singh, Devinder Kaur wife of Gurdev Singh and Balwinder Kaur wife of Nahar Singh. She stated that her parental village is Nainewala. About 23-24 years ago she was married with Inderjit Singh son of Babu Singh resident of Civil Lines Moga. They have one son and three daughters. Her husband owned a Maruti Van No.PB04-1667. She along with her husband had gone to Village Nainewala to see her brother Ajaib Singh resident of Nainewala, in the morning on 20.2.1997, who was ill. She along with her husband came to Bhadaur in the evening for the treatment of her brother Ajaib Singh. When they reached the Taxi Stand Bhadaur, it was about 6 p.m. they found Atma Singh son of Mukhtiar Singh and Lachhman Singh son of Randhir Singh there. Both were known to them. Atma Singh told her husband that he should leave them at the place of his in-laws, which is near Faridkot. Amarjit Kaur's husband Inderjit Singh told her that he would come to the house after leaving them. At that time at the Taxi Stand, Teja Singh was also standing. Amarjit Kaur along with her brother Ajaib Singh then took a bus and came back to Village Nainewala. Complainant's husband Inderjit Singh did not come back till the complaint was filed. They tried to search for him. They came to know that Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -3- Dialpura police had recovered a dead-body from the fields of Salabatpura. Amarjit Kaur along with the above mentioned persons then reached Police Station Salabatpura. She was shown the shirt, pyjama, shoes and socks etc. of the dead- body, which she identified being that of her husband. She suspected that Atma Singh and Lachhman Singh had kidnapped her husband with the connivance of each other and committed his murder. After committing his murder, the dead- body was thrown in the nearby fields of Village Salabatpura. Atma Singh had a grudge that her husband Inderjit Singh had illicit relations with his sister-in-law (Bhabhi) who also belonged to village Nainewala. On the basis of this statement, F.I.R. Ex.PK, was registered on 27.2.1997 at 8.15 a.m. Special report reached the Illaqa Magistrate on the same day at 1.30 p.m. The prosecution to prove its case, brought into the witness-box Dr.Krishan Gopal PW-1, Sukhminder Singh PW-2, Jaspal Singh PW-3, Balraj Singh PW-4, Amarjit Kaur PW-5, Teja Singh PW-6, Jangir Singh PW-7, Ajaib Singh PW-8, SI Major Singh PW-9, Constable Mukhtiar Singh PW-10, SI Balwinder Singh PW-11, Inspector Anokh Singh PW-12, HC Balwinder Singh PW-13, HC Balwant Singh PW-14, Devinder Singh PW-15 and Constable Balaur Singh PW-16. Learned counsel for the appellants has argued, that as per Dr.Krishan Gopal PW-1, the cause of death was not known. There are no injury marks on the body of the deceased. No strangulation has taken place. Going through the post- mortem report Ex.PB/1 it comes out, that it was a case of accident or overdose of liquor which the deceased had consumed and then fallen down in the fields. The body could not be identified, as it was putrified and the skin had been eaten up by Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -4- the animals. The clothes recovered which were shown to Amarjit Kaur PW-5 wife of the deceased do not have any dragging marks, nor are they torn. Teja Singh PW-6 who is the brother-in-law (Saddu), of deceased Inderjit Singh, has stated in his testimony before the Court, that appellants took away the taxi of deceased Inderjit Singh forcibly and in fact, one of the appellants i.e. Atma Singh took the keys and drove it away. If the taxi had been taken away forcibly, then Amarjit Kaur PW-5 and Teja Singh PW-6 would have immediately gone to the police to lodge a report. No taxi driver has come forward to state that the body was lying in the police station as stated by Amarjit Kaur PW-5 in her testimony that she was told of this by a taxi driver. The motive for the commission of the offence, as spelt out in the F.I.R. Ex.PK is that deceased Inderjit Singh was having illicit relations, with the Bhabhi of appellant Lachhman Singh. This was not liked by the appellants. Thus, he was murdered. In her testimony before the Court, Amarjit Kaur PW-5 has not stated anything of this sort, but has stated that appellants took away the deceased and the maruti van, so that they could keep it. The body could not be identified with the clothes. Strangely, the prosecution did not also show the photographs of the dead-body to Amarjit Kaur PW-5. There is an unexplained delay of 7 days in reporting the matter to the police. Occurrence had taken place on 20.2.1997 at 6 p.m. and the matter was reported to the police on 27.2.1997 at 8.15 a.m. If the van had been taken away forcibly, as spelt out out by Teja Singh PW-6, the complainant would not have waited for 7 days to report the matter to the police. Strangely, Amarjit Kaur Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -5- PW-5 did not talk to anyone and not even her brother telling them about the disappearance of her husband, for 7 days. Amarjit Kaur PW-5 is the wife of the deceased. Teja Singh is the Saddu of the deceased. Ajaib Singh PW-8 is the brother-in-law of the deceased. All the three are interested witnesses and strangely at that moment of time, they were present at the Bus Stand when the appellants took away the maruti van of the deceased along with. Learned counsel for the State has argued that complainant along with her Brother Ajaib Singh PW-8 was present at Bhadaur. Ajaib Singh PW-8 was ill and the complainant had come to purchase medicines. The motive for the commission of the offence is that deceased was having illicit relations with the Bhabhi of appellant Lachhman Singh. There was a strong motive to eliminate Inderjit Singh. The prosecution witnesses, Amarjit Kaur PW-5, Teja Singh PW-6 and Ajaib Singh PW-8 though are related to each other, but have spoken the truth and have stated categorically that Inderjit Singh was taken away in the maruti van belonging to the deceased. Thereafter he was not found. All three of them saw the deceased in the company of the appellants and thereafter Inderjit Singh disappeared and his body was found after 6/7 days. The clothes which were on the person of the deceased were identified by the complainant. Teja Singh PW-6 has stated that he had drinks with the deceased and with the appellants before they left. All these witnesses corroborate the prosecution version. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and perused the record with their assistance. In this case Amarjit Kaur complainant and wife of the deceased is Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -6- not clear herself as to what was the motive for the commission of the offence. In the F.I.R. Ex.PK she has stated, “As Atma Singh had a grudge and suspected that her husband (deceased) had illicit relations with his sister-in-law (Bhabhi) who also belonged to Village Nainewala.” But in her testimony before the Court when she appeared as PW-5 she stated, “both the accused in order to take away the van forcibly killed my husband”. Not even a word has been mentioned by her in her examination-in-chief or cross-examination that Atma Singh was suspecting that the deceased was having illicit relations with his Bhabhi and that is the reason for the murder of Inderjit Singh. The prosecution has failed to establish the motive for the commission of the offence. Ajaib Singh PW-8 who is the brother-in-law of the deceased has not corroborated the statement of Amarjit Kaur PW-5 and he has stated that the appellants were inimical towards his brother-in-law Inderjit Singh. The other witnesses Teja Singh PW-6 who is the husband of real sister of Amarjit Kaur PW-5 and Ajaib Singh PW-8 brother of Amarjit Kaur have also not stated anything about the illicit relations of the deceased with appellant Atma Singh's Bhabhi. The three witnesses of the prosecution, namely Amarjit Kaur PW-5, Teja Singh PW-6 and Ajaib Singh PW-8 have materially contradicted each other. Amarjit Kaur PW-5 stated that she was going along with her husband in the maruti van and was taking her brother Ajaib Singh PW-8 to Bhadaur to get medicines for his treatment, as he was ill. When they reached near the taxi stand of Bhadaur, appellants were standing there. They signalled the taxi to stop. They were known to them. Amarjit Singh PW-5 has stated that Teja Singh PW-6 was also present Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -7- there. Ajaib Singh PW-8 in his testimony before the Court has stated that he was taken to Bhadaur by Amarjit Kaur his sister and Inderjit Singh. While returning back from Bhadaur, they met the appellants. This witness has not stated anything about the presence of Teja Singh PW-6. Both these witnesses Amarjit Kaur PW-5 and Ajaib Singh PW-8 have not stated anything of taking liquor by the deceased or Teja Singh PW-6 or the appellants. Teja Singh PW-6 in his testimony before the Court, has stated that appellants requested Inderjit Singh to drop them at Faridkot, Ajaib Singh PW-8 and Amarjit Kaur PW-5 left in a bus, appellant Lachhman Singh, Atma Singh and Inderjit Singh deceased and himself consumed liquor. Deceased Inderjit Singh told them (Amarjit Kaur PW-5 and Ajaib Singh PW-8) in his presence, that he would come back in the morning. Thereafter both the appellants took Inderjit Singh in the maruti van. Appellant Atma Singh took the keys of the van forcibly from Inderjit Singh. Appellant Atma Singh then drove the van with Lachhman Singh and Inderjit Singh sitting in it. Teja Singh PW-6 saw the quarrel and the van being taken away forcibly, but he did not strangely inform the police or Amarjit Kaur PW-5 or Ajaib Singh PW-8, who were very close relatives. This witness has not stated anything about the motive for the commission of the offence. The discrepancies in the statements of Amarjit Kaur PW-5, Teja Singh PW-6 and Ajaib Singh PW-8 as spelt out above are material and are fatal to the case of the prosecution. Going through the medical evidence, Dr.Krishan Goyal PW-1 has stated that the cause of death could not be made out as the body was putrefied and Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -8- eaten up by animals at some portions. He did not observe any symptoms of strangulation. The body was wearing a Kachha, Pyjama, banian and boots which were stained with sand. Amarjit Kaur PW-5 in her testimony before the Court has stated that she identified the body by seeing the clothes, but has not specified as to by which clothes did she identify the body. All that she has stated, is that she learnt that the belongings were of her husband. This itself is not enough to identify the body, as it was in a putrified condition. Amarjit Kaur PW-5 should have been specific and clear as to how she had identified the body of her husband. With the above discussion and observations, appeal is allowed. Appellants are acquitted. If in custody, they be set free forthwith. ( MEHTAB S.GILL ) JUDGE ( JORA SINGH ) August 21, 2008 JUDGE GD WHETHER TO BE REFERRED TO REPORTER? YES/NO Criminal Appeal No.320-DB of 1999 -9-