Criminal Appeal No. 84 of 2011. Case: Gangabhavani Vs Rayapati Venkat Reddy & Ors., (With Criminal Appeal No. 86 of 2011). Supreme Court (India)
| Case Number | Criminal Appeal No. 84 of 2011 |
| Counsel | For Appellant: P. Vinay Kumar, Adv. and For Respondents: Mrs. D. Bharathi Reddy, Adv. |
| Judges | Dr. B.S. Chauhan and S.A. Bobde, JJ. |
| Issue | Indian Penal Code, 1860 - Sections 148, 149, 302; Explosive Substances Act, 1908 - Sections 3, 5, 6; Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 - Section 313; Evidence Act, 1872 - Sections 138, 146 |
| Citation | 2013 CriLJ 4618 |
| Judgement Date | September 04, 2013 |
| Court | Supreme Court (India) |
Judgment:
Dr. B.S. Chauhan, J.
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Both these appeals have been preferred against the impugned judgment and order of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad dated 13.2.2007 passed in Criminal Appeal No. 41 of 2005, reversing the judgment and order dated 22.12.2004 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Kadapa at Proddatur in Sessions Case No. 374 of 2000, by which and whereunder the respondents were found guilty and convicted under Section 148 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter referred as ''the IPC'') and awarded a sentence of 2 years each. A1 and A2 had been convicted for the offence punishable under Section 302 IPC and they were awarded life imprisonment with a fine of Rs.500/- and in default, to undergo further simple imprisonment for one month. They were also convicted under the provisions of Section 3 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908 (hereinafter referred to as the ''Act 1908'') and had been awarded the sentence of 3 years with a fine of Rs.500/- and Rs.200/- respectively and, in default, to further undergo simple imprisonment for one month and 15 days respectively. They had further been convicted under Section 5 of the Act 1908, and were awarded the punishment of three years with a fine of Rs.500/- each, in default to suffer simple imprisonment for one month. A3 to A6 had been convicted and sentenced to undergo life imprisonment and to pay a fine of Rs.500/- each under Section 302 read with Section 149 IPC and, in default of payment of fine, to undergo a further period of simple imprisonment of one month each. However, A3 was acquitted for the offence under Section 6 of the Act 1908. A4 and A5 were further convicted under Sections 3 and 5 of the Act 1908 and awarded the punishment of 3 years on each count with a fine of Rs.500/- and, in default, to undergo a further period of imprisonment for one month. However, all the sentences were directed to run concurrently.
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Facts and circumstances giving rise to these appeals are that:
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On 4.12.1999, Y. Eswara Reddy (PW.1), Y. Gangadhar Reddy (PW.2) and Y. Gangabhavani (PW.3) were working in their agricultural fields alongwith Y. Ramachandra Reddy (deceased) and his brother Balagangi Reddy and others.
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Y. Ramachandra Reddy (deceased) and his brother Balagangi Reddy supported the Congress-I party in the elections held for the State Assembly, while the accused persons supported the Telugu Desham Party (TDP). There were ill feelings between two groups as there existed chronic factionalism between the families of the deceased and accused.
In State Assembly elections, the political parties created pressure on their supporters to get maximum votes, by any means. The accused persons were waiting for the opportunity to kill Balagangi Reddy and Y. Ramachandra Reddy (deceased).
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On 4.12.1999, when PW.1 to PW.3 and some others were doing agricultural work in their fields alongwith Y. Ramachandra Reddy (deceased) in the morning, they heard weeping cries from the agricultural field nearby. All of them rushed to that place and found that Rayapati Narayana Reddy had died due to electrocution. After sometime, they returned to their fields and attended to their work. At 7.30 A.M., the accused Rayapati Venkata Reddy (A1), Rayapati Ramanjul Reddy (A2), Rayapati Bheema Reddy (A3), Korrapati Rami Reddy (A4), Korrapati Thimma Reddy (A5), Kadiyam Rami Reddy (A6), Rayapati Thirupathi Reddy (A7), Rayapati Pedda Venkata Reddy (A8), Kadiyam Rama Subba Reddy (A9), Rayapati Pedda Venkata Reddy (A10), Rayapati Chinna Bali Reddy (A11), Rayapati Venkata Reddy (A12) and Chinnapureddy Bala Chenna Reddy (A13) came to the fields where PW.1 to PW.3, namely, Y. Eswara Reddy (PW.1), Y. Gangadhar Reddy (PW.2) and Y. Gangabhavani Reddy (PW.3) were working armed with deadly weapons like sticks, knives, bombs and sickles whistling war cries and hurling bombs with the intent to kill Ramachandra Reddy and Balagangi Reddy. Balagangi Reddy fled his fields due to fear and was chased by A7 to A13. PW.1 hid himself under cheeky bushes near his field. Y. Ramachandra Reddy (deceased) fled on his cycle. A2 hurled a bomb which fell on the cycle of the deceased and exploded causing the deceased to fall from his cycle. A1 also hurled a bomb which hit the head of Y. Ramachandra Reddy. His head was fractured and he died due to injuries. A4 and A5 also hurled bombs towards the deceased.
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PW.1 to PW.3 witnessed the same, however, failed to give a report immediately to the police due to fear of their lives. Y. Eswara Reddy (PW.1) preferred a complaint to the police, thus, Case Crime No. 137 of 1999 of Muddanur PS was registered. S.V. Ramana, C.I. (PW.9) began investigation, and conducted the inquest over the dead body of the deceased in presence of R. Pedda Naidu (PW.4) and M. Pratap Naidu (PW.7). He also seized blood stained tar, control tar, bomb blast thread pieces and the cycle of the deceased. Further, the Dhoti, Banian and waist thread of the deceased were also seized. Chappals of A5 which had been lying there were recovered in the presence of M. Pedda Aswartha Reddy (PW.5). The dead body of Y. Ramachandra Reddy (deceased) was sent for post-mortem which was conducted by Dr. Y. Karunasree (PW.6) wherein it was opined that he died of shock due to a fracture of the skull bones and lacerations to brain matter. The materials collected were sent for forensic analysis and it was found that the bombs contained Potassium, Chlorate Chloride, Arsenic, Sulphide and Sulphate etc.
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After concluding the investigation, a chargesheet was filed against A1 to A13. During the trial, the prosecution examined 14 witnesses. The accused in their statement under Section 313 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, (hereinafter referred to as the ''Cr.P.C.'') denied their involvement and submitted that they had been falsely implicated because of political enmity. The defence also examined one Penugonda Sreenivasulu (DW.1), who claimed to have prepared the site plan (Ex.X-1) but not on the basis of scale measurement.
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On the basis of the evidence etc., the trial court found A1 to A6 guilty of the aforesaid offences and awarded them sentences as referred to hereinabove, however, A7 to A13 were acquitted.
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Aggrieved, A1 to A6 filed Criminal Appeal No. 41 of 2005 which has been allowed by the High Court. Hence, these appeals by the complainant as well as by the State of Andhra Pradesh.
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Shri Sidharth Luthra, learned ASG appearing on behalf of the State of Andhra Pradesh and Shri Huzefa Ahmadi, learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant/complainant, have submitted that the High Court acquitted the said respondents without any justification. The High Court mainly found material contradictions in the evidence of PW.1 to PW.3 and doubted their presence at the place of occurrence; considered the delay in lodging the FIR fatal; found contradictions in medical evidence and ocular evidence; doubted the witnessing of the occurrence as there could be no visibility because of the smoke created by the bombs at the time of explosion; PW.1 did not mention that A6 used a sickle in the FIR; and that only interested witnesses had been examined. It was contended that the High Court erroneously did the same even though, the contradictions in the medical and ocular evidence were insignificant and the contradictions in the statements of PWs 1 to 3 were minor in nature. The findings of fact recorded by the High Court are perverse being based on no evidence. Thus, the appeals deserve to be allowed and the judgment of the trial court deserves to be restored.
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Per contra, Shri Altaf Ahmad, learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the respondents, opposed the appeal contending that this Court should not interfere with the judgment of the High Court keeping in mind the well settled parameters for interference with the order of acquittal. The High Court has given cogent reasons for acquittal of...
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