Ram Chander & Ors vs State Of Haryana

2) The case of the prosecution is as under:

4) Messo and Raj Bala (mother and daughter) were living in one house at village Arnianwali. Guddi was their next-door neighbour. Messo was in search of a boy for Raj Bala and had selected one boy from a place called Manak Dewan for which talks had been going on for the last one month or so from the date of incident. The engagement ceremony was accordingly fixed for 22.09.1996 at Arnianwali. Dholi alias Krishna (married daughter of Messo) had, therefore, come to her mother’s place at Arnianwali on 19.09.1996 to help her mother and sister–Raj Bala for the ceremony.

6) Messo fearing with the threat of Sohan Lal asked her daughter Dholi to go immediately to her brother, Ram Sarup at village Dhigtania which was around 20 KM away from her house and inform him about happening of such incident with her. Dholi, accordingly, went there and narrated the incident to Ram Sarup-her maternal uncle. She then stayed overnight with Ram Sarup.

7) On 21.09.1996, in the early hours, when Dholi and Ram Sarup accompanied by one Om Prakash-Sarpanch of Village Dhigtania reached to the house of Messo, they found both, Messo and Raj Bala, missing from the house. They, therefore, went to the house of Guddi (PW-9), who was living next to the house of Messo. They noted that Guddi was weeping and was in the state of shock.

8) When they inquired from her about the whereabouts of Messo and Raj Bala, Guddi told them that Sohan Lal and his four sons had come in the night and murdered Messo and Raj Bala, burnt their bodies in house and carried the remains of the dead bodies and ashes in a cart driven by the tractor from her house to an unknown place.

9) This led to the registration of FIR bearing No.197 (Ex-PA-1) dated 21.09.1996 by Dholi at Police Station Nathusari Chopta naming Sohan Lal and his four sons (appellants herein) as accused persons for committing the murder of her mother-Messo and sister–Raj Bala. The police authorities then started investigation, visited the spot, recorded the statements of the witnesses, prepared the spot map, recovered several articles from the spot and arrested the accused persons. On being interrogated, the accused made disclosure statements about the manner in which ashes/bones of both the deceased were disposed of in a nearby Canal known as-Sheranwali Canal and also disclosed the place where the weapons used in commission of the offence and tractor with cart were kept. On such disclosure being made, the police made recoveries of the articles at the instance of the accused.

11) On 07.08.1997, Om Parkash-one of the accused escaped from police custody from Civil Hospital Sirsa. Proceedings under Sections 82 and 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code,1973 (for short ‘the Code’) were initiated against him. He was declared ‘Proclaimed Offender’ and proceedings under Section 299 of the Code were ordered to be taken up against him. The trial of other accused, however, proceeded on merits.

13) After arrest of Om Parkash on 22.02.1999, a separate trial was conducted against him and after its completion, the Trial Court, by a separate judgment dated 7/8.08.2000, convicted him for the offences punishable under Sections 148, 302/149 and 201/149 IPC and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year under Section 148 IPC imprisonment for life and fine of Rs.5000/- with default clause under Section 302/149 IPC and rigorous imprisonment for two years under Section 201/149 IPC. All the substantive sentences were ordered to run concurrently.

49) It is with this evidence, the question arises as to whether the two Courts below were justified in placing reliance on the evidence of Guddi (PW-9) for resting the appellant's conviction?

50) On scanning the aforementioned evidence, we are of the considered opinion that both the Courts below were justified in accepting the evidence of Guddi (PW-9) for resting the appellants’ conviction upon it. We, while concurring with the reasoning and the conclusion of both the Courts below, give our reasons infra. In our view, the following facts are proved with the aid of evidence.