Latest Judgement Omkar Singh Versus Jaiprakash Narain Singh & Anr. 2022

New Delhi  :- JUDGEMENT OVERVIEW

COURT :  Supreme Court of India (Division Bench (DB)- Two Judge)

JUDGEMENT NAME : :  Omkar Singh Versus Jaiprakash Narain Singh & Anr. Appeal (Crl.), 84 of 2022

JUDGEMENT DATE :  Feb 09, 2022

RELATED SECTIONS : INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860

INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860

Section 302 – Punishment for murder

 

IMPORTANT PARAGRAPH :

M. R. Shah, J.

  1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned

judgment and order dated 15.03.2019 passed by the High

Court of Judicature at Allahabad in Criminal Appeal No.

304 of 1983 by which the High Court has allowed the said

appeal preferred by respondent No.1 herein – original

accused No.2 and has acquitted him for the offences

punishable under Section 302 read with Section 34 of the

IPC, the original informant – son of the deceased has

preferred the present appeal.

  1. As per the case of the prosecution, one Omkar Singh son of

Parasnath Singh lodged an FIR at Police Station Karanda,

District Gazipur stating that due to the enmity going on

between his family members with Udaibhan Singh and his

father Jaiprakash Narain Singh @ Lala (original accused

Nos.1 and 2) his father has been killed. As per the

allegation, on 21.04.1982, there was marriage of daughter of

one Kailashu Vishwakarma, who was his neighbour where

he along with his Tau ­ Vikrama Singh and his cousin

brother Indradeo Singh had gone. After taking meal at about

12 in the night, he along with his Tau and cousin had gone

on his pumping set for sleeping where his father Parasnath

was lying from before. He and his cousin Indradeo Singh

had slept on one cot whereas his Tau had slept on another

cot. There was a lantern burning which was hanging on a

stick. In between 2:30­3:00 am in the night, accused

Udaibhan Singh came near his cot and pulled the bed­sheet

on which he and his cousin woke up and his Tau also woke

  1. At that moment Jaiprakash Narain Singh @ Lala (A­2)

exhorted and stated that Paras is lying here come quickly

and shoot him on which Udaibhan Singh (A­1) went near

the cot of his father Parasnath and shot him with country

made pistol on his chest from a point­blank range and when

the informant and the witnesses raised alarm then

Udaibhan Singh again reloaded his country made pistol and

threatened them on account of which they kept quiet.

Thereafter both the accused ran away towards North.

During the course of investigation, the Investigating Officer

(IO) recorded the statements of the concerned witnesses

including eye witnesses and also collected the relevant

evidences. On conclusion of the investigation, the IO filed

the chargesheet against both the accused for the offences

under Sections 302 read with Section 302/34 of the IPC. As

the case was exclusively triable by the learned Court of

Sessions, the case was committed to the sessions court.

Accused pleaded not guilty and therefore both of them came

to be tried by the learned Sessions Court for the offences

punishable under Sections 302 and 302/34 of the IPC

respectively.

  1. In order to bring the guilt of the accused the prosecution

examined PW­1 Omkar Singh – informant and PW­2

Inderdeo Singh and PW­4 Vikram Singh (all eye witnesses)

and PW­3 Dr. P.C. Srivastava who conducted the post

mortem of the deceased and PW­5 SI Kamta Singh. On

closure of the evidence on behalf of the prosecution, further

statements of the accused under Section 313 Cr.PC were

recorded. That thereafter on appreciation of the entire

evidence on record and believing PW­1, PW­2 and PW­4 (eye

witnesses) the learned Trial Court convicted A­1 – Udaibhan

Singh for the offences punishable under Section 302 of the

IPC and A­2 – Jaiprakash Narain Singh @ Lala for the

offences punishable under Section 302 read with Section 34

of the IPC and sentenced them to undergo life

imprisonment.

  1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the judgment and

order of conviction and sentence passed by the learned Trial

Court convicting the accused for the offences punishable

under Section 302 and Section 302/34 of the IPC

respectively, the accused preferred an appeal before the

High Court. By the impugned judgment and order, the High

Court has though believed the eye witnesses – PW­1, PW­2

and PW­4 so far as the A­1 – Udaibhan is concerned and

has confirmed the judgment and order of conviction passed

by the learned Trial Court convicting the A­1 – Udaibhan,

has acquitted A­2 – Jaiprakash Narain Singh @ Lala mainly

on the ground that the three prosecution witnesses had

given him role of exhortation only and no overt act has been

assigned to him and therefore there might be an

exaggeration of his role and false implication by the

witnesses in order to see that both the accused – father and

son are put behind the bars because of the property dispute

between the parties.

  1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned

judgment and order passed by the High Court acquitting

respondent No.1 herein ­ original accused No.2, the original

informant has preferred the present appeal.

  1. Shri D.P. Singh Yadav, learned counsel appearing on behalf

of the appellant has vehemently submitted that in the facts

and circumstances of the case, the High Court has

committed a grave error while acquitting respondent No.1

herein – original accused No.2.

6.1 It is vehemently submitted by learned counsel appearing on

behalf of the appellant that as such respondent No.1 was

named in the FIR. It is submitted that all the three eye

witnesses – PW ­1, PW­2 & PW­4 named respondent No.1 –

accused who went to the pumping set where the deceased

was sleeping and that respondent No.1 with a common

intention to murder the deceased accompanied his son –

accused No.1 and on finding the deceased on a different cot

exhorted his son to kill him and thereafter accused No.1

killed the deceased with fire arm. It is submitted that

therefore the learned Trial Court rightly convicted

respondent No.1 – accused with aid of Section 34 of the IPC.

6.2 It is further submitted that even as per the finding recorded

by the High Court the motive has been established and

proved by the prosecution. It is submitted that

unfortunately the High Court has acquitted respondent No.1

– accused solely on the ground that overt act assigned to

respondent No.1 – accused No.2 is of exhortation only and

therefore, his involvement appears to be doubtful.

 

6.3 It is submitted that the said finding/observation is on

surmises and conjectures and just contrary to the evidence

on record. It is submitted that the presence of the accused

has been established and proved by the prosecution by

examining PW­1, PW­2 and PW­4, who are the eye witnesses

and that their evidence has been believed by the High

Court. It is submitted that therefore there is no reason to

doubt the presence of the accused – respondent No.1 herein

at the place of incident.

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