Summary
The State challenged acquittal of two accused in a murder committed by an armed group. The High Court had doubted their presence because no axe injury was found. The Supreme Court held that eyewitness testimony explained the absence of such injury: the deceased had caught the axe. Their presence and shared intention were established, and individual infliction of injury was unnecessary for liability on that basis. The Court restored their convictions and sentences and required surrender within four weeks.
Issues
- Whether absence of an axe injury materially contradicted the eyewitness account.
- Whether the two accused were liable for murder through shared common intention despite not individually causing an injury.
- Whether their acquittals should stand.
Provisions considered
- Sections 302 and 34, Indian Penal Code, 1860With presence and common intention to kill proved, liability for murder did not depend on each accused using a weapon successfully or individually inflicting an injury. (¶ 4.1-5)
Held
- The eyewitnesses consistently placed the accused with the armed group, and their names appeared in the FIR from the outset. The testimony that the deceased caught the axe explained why it caused no injury; the supposed ocular-medical contradiction was therefore not material. (¶ 4.1)
- Once the prosecution established that the accused shared the common intention to kill, it was immaterial that a particular participant had not used a weapon or caused an injury. The High Court failed to address the trial court’s specific common-intention findings. (¶ 4.2-4.3)
- The High Court had acquitted the two respondents through a brief reliance on the supposed contradiction without adequately considering the evidence as a whole. The prosecution had established their presence and common intention, so the trial court’s convictions and sentences were restored. (¶ 4.3-5)
- The two respondents were required to undergo the remaining sentences and surrender before the competent jail authorities or court within four weeks. (¶ 5)
Result
State appeal allowed. The acquittals of original accused 1 and 3 were set aside and their trial-court convictions under Sections 302 read with 34, and sentences, restored. They were directed to surrender within four weeks and undergo the remaining sentences.