IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CR. REV. No.524 of 2011
Rajendra Singh s/o Late Nageshwar Singh
resident of village Basaiti, P.S. Raniganj
(Bousi) District Araria.
... Petitioner.
Versus
The State Of Bihar ... Opposite Party.
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5. 09.09.2011 The accused-petitioner has preferred
this revision application against the judgment
and order dated 28th January 2011 passed by the
learned Additional Sessions Judge, FTC-V,
Araria in Cr. Appeal No. 29 of 1995 by which
the appeal has been dismissed confirming the
judgment of conviction and sentence dated
29.5.1995 passed by the 1st Assistant Sessions
Judge, Araria in Sessions Trial No. 305 of 1987
by which the accused petitioner has been held
guilty under Sections 395 and 412 of I.P.C. and
sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for
seven years each of sections and all sentences
are to run concurrently.
Having perused the trial Court
judgment and paragraph 8 of the Appellate Court
judgment, this Court is satisfied that the
matter requires consideration only on the
question of sentence.
Heard. With consent of parties, the
application is being finally disposed of at
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admission stage itself.
It has been submitted on behalf of
the petitioner that out of four accused
appellants, three have filed Cr. Revision No.
511 of 2011 in the High Court which has been
disposed of by order dated 2.5.2011 and the
case of the petitioner is similarly situated
except the facts that the petitioner has also
been found guilty under Section 395 and 412
I.P.C. and has been sentenced to rigorous
imprisonment for seven years under each
section and the sentences are to run
concurrently. The sentence of other convicts
has been reduced to three and a half years
under Section 412 I.P.C. Since sentences have
to run concurrently, the sentence of the
petitioner may also be reduced to the same
period.
Altogether four persons were charged
for the offence punishable under Sections 395
and 412 I.P.C. in Sessions Trial No. 305 of
1987 in the Court of 1st Assistant Sessions
Judge, Araria. A dacoity was committed in the
house the informant (P.W.3) wherein certain
households articles including utensils and
cloths were looted. On conclusion of
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investigation, charge-sheet was submitted
leading to trial. At the trial, nine
prosecution witnesses were examined besides
exhibiting documents. After trial all the
accused except Dayanand Singh were held guilty
for the offence punishable under Section 412
I.P.C. and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment
for seven years and the petitioner was further
held guilty under Section 395 and was sentenced
to rigorous imprisonment for seven years and
the sentences under Sections 395 and 412 I.P.C.
are to run concurrently. Thereafter, all the
convicts filed Cr. Appeal No. 29 of 1995 which
was dismissed by the learned Additional
Sessions Judge, FTC-V, vide impugned judgment
dated 28.1.2011 confirming the judgment of
sentence passed by the learned trial court.
Thus the petitioner has been held guilty by the
two Courts below.
It appears that the petitioner has no
criminal antecedent and all dacoits and the
petitioner were aged about 30 years at the time
of conviction. The occurrence has taken place
on 22/23 March 1987. More than 24 years have
passed and the petitioner has been suffering
from mental agony for long years.
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Considering the facts and
circumstances, this Court is satisfied that the
petitioner deserves lesser quantum of
punishment for the proved charge. Accordingly,
while upholding the conviction recorded by the
learned Trial Court and duly affirmed by the
learned Appellate Court, the sentence imposed
on the petitioner is reduced to rigorous
imprisonment for three and a half years under
Section 395 and 412 IPC each and both the
sentences to run concurrently.
In the result, this application is
dismissed with the aforesaid modification in
the sentence.
Kanchan (Amaresh Kumar Lal, J.)