Rajendra Singh vs State Of U.P. & Anr

3. In the morning hours between 6.30 a.m. and 7.00 a.m. on 15.12.1995, three persons, viz., the wife, son and brother-in-law of Nigam Singh were murdered. An FIR of the incident was lodged by Nigam Singh at 8.10 a.m. on 15.12.1995 at P.S. George Town, Allahabad. After investigation, charge sheet was submitted and four persons, viz., Kapil Dev Singh (respondent No. 2 herein), Suresh Singh, Sukhpal Singh and Kamlesh Singh were put up for trial. The present incident took place on 16.3.2002 when the trial of the aforesaid tripple murder case was going on. According to the case of the prosecution, the accused of the tripple murder case were putting pressure on Nigam Singh not to give evidence in the said case. It is alleged that at about 6.00 p.m. on 16.3.2002, the first informant Rajendra Singh (appellant herein) and his brother Ajay Singh were returning after getting their field harvested. At that time, Nigam Singh also arrived there on a scooter. The accused in the present case, viz., Kapil Dev Singh (respondent No. 2 herein) and Daya Singh stopped him and asked him not to give evidence in the tripple murder case. Nigam Singh, however, did not agree to their suggestion not to give evidence and tried to move ahead on his scooter. Kapil Dev Singh then instigated his brother Daya Singh, who fired upon Nigam Singh from a country-made pistol. In spite of receiving the gun shot injury, Nigam Singh managed to escape from there and informed about the incident to his family members. Meanwhile, the first informant, Rajendra Singh, and his elder brother Ajay Singh also reached there. However, Nigam Singh succumbed to his injuries shortly thereafter. Thereafter, Rajendra Singh lodged an FIR of the incident at 8.30 p.m. on 16.3.2002 at P.S. Pipri. The police after investigation submitted charge-sheet only against Daya Singh and not against Kapil Dev Singh. In the trial before the learned Sessions Judge, Allahabad, the statement of the first informant, Rajendra Singh was recorded where he specifically stated about the presence of Kapil Dev Singh and the role played by him in the incident. The prosecution then moved an application for summoning Kapil Dev Singh under Section 319 Cr.P.C. The learned Sessions Judge held that Kapil Dev Singh is named in the FIR and the first informant Rajendra Singh in his statement had corroborated the version given in the FIR and had assigned the role of exhortation to him and after taking note of the relevant law on the subject, allowed the application by the order dated 26.5.2005 and directed that Kapil Dev Singh be summoned to face the trial.

4. Kapil Dev Singh then filed a petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. for quashing the aforesaid order before the High Court. It appears that in the petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. the statements of certain witnesses who had been examined by the investigating officer during the course of investigation were annexed which included the statement of S.L. Yadav, Vijay Kumar Singh, Up Nagar Ayukta, Shankar Lal Jaiswal, Mukhya Nagar Adhikari and some other officials of Nagar Nigam, who had stated that respondent No. 2 Kapil Dev Singh was working as Sahayak Nagar Ayukta, Nagar Nigam, Allahabad and between 4.30 p.m. and 5.30 p.m. on 16.3.2002, he was attending a meeting in the Nagar Nigam. After referring to the aforesaid statements, the High Court concluded as under :

12. Having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case and in the interest of justice, we consider it desirable that the criminal revision filed by Rajendra Singh against the acquittal of Daya Singh should be heard by the High Court as expeditiously as possible. We accordingly request the High Court to decide Criminal Revision No.1828 of 2007 (Rajendra Singh v. Daya Singh) expeditiously preferably within a period of four months of presentation of a certified copy of this order before the High Court.

13. In the result, the appeal succeeds and is hereby allowed. The impugned judgment and order dated 24.4.2006 of the High Court is set aside and the order dated 26.5.2005 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Allahabad, summoning respondent No. 2 Kapil Dev Singh to face trial is restored.