Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1759; 1979CriLJ7; (1978)4SCC77; [1979]1SCR527; 1978(10)LC737(SC)
Kailasam, J.1. The five appellants have preferred this appeal under Section 2(a) of the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970, from the judgment and order of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana in Criminal Appeal No. 636 of 1971.2. The five appellants and three others were charged for various offences, punishable under the Indian Penal Code for rioting armed with deadly weapons and for causing the death of one Pakhar Singh inflicting grievous and simple hurt to Pritam Kaur wife of Pakhar Singh on 17-4-1970 at about 7.30 A.M. in the village Bassi of Nurpur Bedi Police Station. The Additional Sessions Judge, Patiala, found the accused not guilty of the various offences with which they were charged and acquitted them.3. The State of Punjab preferred an appeal to the High Court of Punjab and Haryana against the order of acquittal. The High Court maintained the acquittal of three accused, Nikha Singh, Binder Singh and Jit Singh but reversed the order of a...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1514; 1978CriLJ1534; (1978)4SCC104; [1979]1SCR512
ORDERKrishna Iyer, J.1. A litigation with a social dimension, even in a blinkered adversary system, serves a larger cause than the limited lis before the court. This petition, with non-specific reliefs, is one such.2. Sobraj, the petitioner, by the frequency of his forensic complaints against incarceratory torture and Dr. Ghatate, his counsel, by the piquancy of his hortative advocacy of freedom behind bars, have sought to convert the judicial process from a constitutional sentinel of prison justice-which, emphatically, it is-into a meticulous auditor-general of jail cells-which, pejoratively, it is not-although, on occasions, 'thin partition do their bounds divide'. Often, as here, the fountain of confusion in penitentiary jurisprudence is forgetfulness of fundamentals. Once the legal basics are stated, Sobraj, with his disingenuous, finical grievances, will be out of court.3. What are the governing principles, decisionally set down by this Court in Batra and Sobraj Has the court juri...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1511; 1980CAR175; 1978(84)CriLJ1531; 1978(4)SCC35; 1978CRLR631; 1979SCC(Cri)56
KAILASAM, J.1. This appeal is preferred by Modan Singh under Section 2 of the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970 against the judgment of the High Court of Rajasthan in Criminal Appeal No. 664 of 1968 reversing the order acquittal of the appellant by the session judge.2. The appellant, Modan Singh, and one Sampuran Singh, were tried by the Session Judge of Ganganagar for causing the death of one Prithvi Singh on December 16, 1966 and acquitted.3. The case for the prosecution may be briefly stated. Jugraj Singh, PW 1 was a resident of the village of Banwala and was Sarpanch of Gram panchayat of the village. On the evening preceding the night of the occurrence, Prithvi Singh, the deceased came to PW 1's house and requested him to provided accommodation for the night. PW 1 allowed him to stay in an outer room of his house. While PW 1 was talking with others, the two accused, Sampuran Singh and Modan Singh, appellant herein, came there with Mewa Singh, ...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
P.S. KAILASAM, J.1. This appeal is preferred by Modan Singh under Section 2 of the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970 against the judgment of the High Court of Rajasthan in Criminal Appeal No. 664 of 1968 reversing the order of acquittal of the appellant by the Sessions Judge.2. The appellant, Modan Singh, and one Sampuran Singh, were tried by the Sessions Judge of Ganganagar for causing the death of one Prithvi Singh on December 16, 1966 and were acquitted.3. The case for the prosecution may be briefly stated. Jugraj Singh, PW 1 was a resident of the village of Banwala and was Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat of the village. On the evening preceding the night of the occurrence, Prithvi Singh, the deceased came to PW 1's house and requested him to provide accommodation for the night. PW 1 allowed him to stay in an outer room of his house. While PW 1 was talking with others, the two accused, Sampuran Singh and Modan Singh, appellant herein, came there wit...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1583; (1978)4SCC152; [1979]1SCR520; 1978(10)LC705(SC)
Krishna Iyer, J.1. An election petition became an infant casualty because of an alleged non-joinder of a necessary party as visualised by Section 82(b) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (the Act, hereafter). That premature dismissal, by-passing investigation into the merits, has driven the petitioner-appellant to this Court where he has urged that the ends of law and justice have been stultified by the strangely technical view taken by the High Court in its dismissal order.2. A few facts, and then, a brief discussion, the point being res integra so far as this Court is concerned. The appellant before us is the election-petitioner, having been a defeated candidate in the General Elections held in June, 1977. There were quite a few candidates, including one Shri Mal Singh, who appears to have retired from the contest for the seat although duly nominated as a candidate. The respondent was returned as the successful candidate and the disappointed petitioner challenged the elect...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1675; AIR1980SC1579; 1978CriLJ1741; 1980CriLJ1099; (1978)4SCC494; (1980)3SCC488; [1979]1SCR392; [1980]2SCR557
Krishna Iyer, J.1.The province of prison justice, the conceptualization of freedom behind bars and the role of judicial power as constitutional sentinel in a prison setting, are of the gravest moment in a world of escalating torture by the minions of State, and in India, where this virgin area of jurisprudence is becoming painfully relevant. Therefore, explicative length has been the result; and so it is that, with all my reverence for and concurrence with my learned brethren on the jurisdictional and jurisprudential basics they have indicated, I have preferred to plough a lonely furrow.The Core-questions.2. One important interrogation lies at the root of these twin writ petitions : Does a prison setting, ipso facto, out-law the rule of law, lock out the judicial process from the jail gates and declare a long holiday for human rights of convicts in confinement, and (to change the mataphor) if there is no total eclipse, what luscent segment is open for judicial justice? Three inter-rela...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1979SC1352; (1979)1SCC92; 1978(10)LC718(SC)
V.D. Tulzapurkar, J. 1. This appeal, by certificate under Article 133(1)(a)(b) of the Constitution, raises an interesting but complex question of law, namely, what was the law of limitation applicable in the Union Territories of Goa, Daman and Diu to proceedings launched therein prior to and pending at the date of liberation? The question arises in these circumstances.2. One Melquiades Lusitano Joaquim Urbano Periera died some time prior to 1941 leaving as his heirs his widow Maria Gristina De Souza Sodder (Appellant No. 1), two sons Elesbano Pereira and Ciano Pereira (Appellant Nos, 2 and 3) arid two daughters Maila Zurana Pereira and Linda Pereira (Respondent Nos. 1 and 3). After the death of Melquiades his estate and property were partitioned on or about January 28, 1941; at that time respondent No. 1 was a minor. On March 15, 1960, the first respondent and her husband second respondent filed a suit against the appellants and third and fourth respondents in the Comarca Court at Marg...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC569; 1979CriLJ476; (1978)4SCC482; [1979]43STC271(SC)
P.S. Kailasam, J.1. These appeals Nos. 145, 311 and 314 of 1971 are preferred respectively by G.S. Bakshi, Jaswant Singh Kalsi and Joginder Singh Nanda by special leave against the judgment of the Delhi High Court in Criminal Appeals Nos. 155, 156 and 158 of 1968.2. There were seven accused before the Sessions Judge, Delhi in Sessions Case No. 3 of 1967. The learned Sessions Judge acquitted two of the accused, Amar Singh Nanda and Jagjit Singh Bhasin. He convicted the other five accused of offences under Sections 120B, 411, 471 and 420 read with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code. Except two accused, Kapoor Singh with whom we are not concerned and J.S. Kalsi, appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 311 of 1971, the others were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for four years under Sections 471 and 420 read with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code and with a fine of Rs. 5,000 under Section 471 of the Indian Penal Code and for one year under Section 411 read with Section 120B of the India...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1525; 1978CriLJ1598; (1978)4SCC111; [1979]1SCR383
Kailasam, J.1.The two criminal appeals Nos. 59 and 60 of 1972 are by special leave. Criminal Appeal No. 59 of 1972 is preferred by Sarwan Singh, Karnail Singh, Zora Singh and Malkiat Singh, while Criminal Appeal No. 60 of 1972 is by Bachan Singh against their conviction and sentence imposed on them by the trial court and confirmed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Criminal Appeal No. 512 of 1970. this Court granted special leave in both cases limited to the question as to whether the offence committed by the appellants is one punishable under Section 300 I.P.C. or under any part of Section 304 I.P.C.2. The facts necessary for determining what offence the accused were guilty of may be stated. Sant Singh is the father of Sarwan Singh, Bachan Singh and Mewa Singh. Sarwan Singh is the first appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 59 of 1972 and Bachan Singh is the sole appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 60 of 1972. The deceased Mewa Singh is their brother. Sarwan Singh had two sons, Zora Sing...
Tag this Judgment!Court : Supreme Court of India
Reported in : AIR1978SC1544; 1978CriLJ1614; (1978)4SCC474
Jaswant Singh, J.1. This appeal by special leave is directed against the Judgment and Order dated April 15, 1976 of the Allahabad High Court (in Criminal Appeal No. 2489 of 1975 and Reference No. 64 of 1975) confirming the conviction of the appellant under Section 302, I.P.C. and the sentence of death imposed on him thereunder for intentionally causing the death of his own son named Gorakh Prasad aged about 30 years, on the night between September 1 and September 2, 1974, in the field of Phool Chand Lonia on the outskirts of village Patra Tola Fakirahna within the jurisdiction of Police Station Pipraich, District Gorakhpur. 2. The story as put forth by prosecution was as follows: The appellant who belongs to village Patra, District Gorakhpur was employed at the relevant time as Daftary in the D. A. V. College, Gorakhpur. About a year and a half, before the occurrence, the deceased who was a Peon in the same institution gave up service at the instance of the appellant and set up a tea-s...
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