Daya Singh Lahoriya @ Rajeev Sudan @ ... vs State Of Rajasthan

3. It is not necessary to set out facts in detail since we have stated all the facts in Criminal Appeal No. 867 of 2006 (Suman Sood @ Kamal Jeet Kaur v. State of Rajasthan) and a cognate matter which we have decided today. Suffice it to state that a complaint being First Information Report (FIR) No. 84 of 1995 was registered at Malviya Nagar Police Station, Jaipur on February 26, 1995 against Daya Singh, appellant herein, Suman Sood @ Kamal Jeet Kaur (accused No.2) and one Harnek Singh @ Surender Verma (absconding) for offences punishable under Sections 353, 420, 468, 471, 472, 473, 474 read with Section 120B Indian Penal Code ('IPC' for short), for offences punishable under Sections 4 and 5 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908, Sections 7 and 25 of Arms Act, 1959 and Section 18 of TADA etc.

4. The case of the prosecution was that the appellant herein along with his wife Suman Sood @ Kamal Jeet Kaur fabricated Registration Certificate for purchasing several vehicles in order to carry out conspiracy of kidnapping and abducting one Rajender Mirdha, son of Shri Ram Niwas Mirdha to exert pressure on the Government of India to release one Devendra Singh Bhullar, an alleged Khalistani terrorist who was being held in custody by the police. It was also alleged that the appellant was found to be in possession of prohibited arms and ammunition allegedly recovered from House No. B-117, Model Town, Ashok Nagar during police raid where the appellant was staying.

13. So far as extradition of the appellant is concerned, we have already dealt with all contentions relating to Extradition Treaty as well as Extradition Order exhaustively in the other matter. There we have noted that extradition of the appellant was also allowed for trial of offences punishable under the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.

14. In our opinion, therefore, prosecution, conviction and sentence of the appellant for offences punishable under Explosive Substances Act, 1908 cannot be said to be without jurisdiction or in excess of authority of law. The said contention, therefore, has no force and must be negatived.

15. So far as the other contention is concerned, we have dismissed the appeal filed by the appellant against his conviction for an offence punishable under Section 364A IPC wherein the appellant-accused has been ordered to undergo imprisonment for life. No useful purpose, therefore, will be served by entering into the merits of the matter as the maximum punishment awarded by the trial Court and confirmed by the High Court in the present appeal was of seven years for the offences said to have been committed by the appellant and the appellant had already undergone the said sentence. The counsel appearing for the appellant in the High Court appears to have kept in view the above position and did not press the appeal. In the light of the finding recorded by us in the cognate matter, this appeal is, more or less, academic and has become infructuous in view of the following circumstances;

(i) the appellant has been convicted for an offence punishable under Section 364A, IPC and has been ordered to undergo sentence of imprisonment for life and we have upheld the said order; and

(ii) in the present appeal, the appellant has challenged his conviction and sentence whereby he has been ordered to undergo imprisonment for seven years. The appellant has remained in jail for seven years and the said period is over.

16. For the foregoing reasons, the appeal deserves to be disposed of and is accordingly disposed of without entering into merits of the case.