Raj Lal Sahu @ Raj Lal Sah and Others vs The State of Bihar

Gopal Prasad, J.—Nobody appears on behalf of the Appellants. Mr. Arun Kumar Tripathi, Advocate is appointed as amicus curiae to assist this Court.

Heard learned amicus curiae and learned Counsel for the State.

The Appellants, namely, Raj Lal Sah, Jiwach Sah and Dukhi Sah have been convicted for the offence u/s 324 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for two years. No separate sentence has been passed for the offence u/s 148 of the Indian Penal Code. Appellants, namely, Singheshwar Sah, Lal Bahadur Sah and Uma Shankar Sah have been convicted for the offence u/s 323 and 147 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for six months. The Appellant Umeshwar Sah has been convicted u/s 380 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years.

The learned amicus curiae, however, submits that though the Appellants have sentenced but the benefit of Section 360 of the Code of Criminal Procedure may be given. The case is of the year 1990 and the Appellants have suffered much the rigors of trial all along since 1990 and hence under the facts and circumstances the benefit of Section 360 of the Code of Criminal Procedure be given to the Appellants and are ordered to be released on due admonition and hence the appeal is dismissed with modification in sentence.

Mr. Arun Kumar Tripathi, shall be supplied a copy of this judgment and he shall be entitled for the fee of hearing payable by High Court Legal Services Committee, Patna.