Varinder Singh v. State of Punjab

Present: Mr. H.S. Sethi, Senior Advocate with Mr. Amit Sethi, Advocate for the petitioner. Mr. J.S. Bhullar, Assistant Advocate General, Punjab for the State. KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA, J. (ORAL) Present revision petition has been preferred by Varinder Singh son of Kanshi Ram. He was named as an accused in case FIR No.13 dated 29.01.1999 registered at Police Station Ropar under Sections 279/304-A IPC. The Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ropar vide its judgment dated 10th August, 2001 held the petitioner guilty of an offence punishable under Sections 279 and 304-A IPC and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of six months under Section 279 IPC. He was further sentenced under Section 304-A IPC to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of one and a half year and to pay a fine of Rs.500/-, in default of payment of fine to further undergo simple imprisonment for one month. Both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently. Criminal Revision No. 816 of 2002 2 Aggrieved against the same, petitioner had filed an appeal. The appellate Court found no merit in the appeal and dismissed the same. Conviction of the petitioner was upheld and the sentence awarded to him was maintained. Hence the present revision petition. FIR, in the present case, was lodged on the basis of statement Ex.PA made by Kuldip Singh PW-1 on 29th January, 1999. His statement, when translated into English, reads as under: “Statement of Kuldip Singh son of Harbhajan Singh caste Saini, resident of village Khawaspura, Police Station Sadar Ropar, aged 37 years. Stated that I am resident of above mentioned address and do agricultural work. Today, at about 5.00 p.m. I was going to Ropar on my bicycle for domestic work. When I reached near Railway crossing, Avtar Singh son of Kishan Singh caste Saini resident of village Lodhi Majra met me. I alighted from my bicycle an started talking to Avtar Singh. Meanwhile, my brother Kulwant Singh son of Harbhajan Singh caste Saini resident of Khawaspura, was coming from his village on his scooter make Bajaj Chetak bearing registration No.PB-12C-2282 and he was going towards Ropar. When he crossed us, it was about 6.30 p.m. At that moment from the Ropar side, one Truck, the registration number of which was later-on learnt as HP-28-0351, came on a very high speed in a rash and negligent manner. The driver of the truck had not blown any horn and had hit the scooter of my brother Kulwant Singh bearing registration No.PB-12C-2282, due to which Kulwant Singh died at the spot and his scooter was also damaged. The truck driver, after leaving the truck at the spot, ran away. I can identify him in case he is brought before me. After leaving Avtar Singh to take care of the dead body of my brother, I was going to the Police Station to lodge a report, when you have met me in the way and I have got my statement recorded. I have heard the same and same is correct. This accident had taken place little ahead the at Railway crossing Ropar towards Nakodar side.” Criminal Revision No. 816 of 2002 3 The above said FIR was investigated and report under Section 173 Cr.P.C. was submitted against the petitioner. Kuldip Singh appeared as PW-1. He reiterated as to what was stated in the FIR. He also identified the accused in the Court for the first time. The relevant portion of his cross examination, when translated into English, reads as under: “That driver was not known to me before the accident. I do not know as to when and from where the driver was arrested. The driver was not got identified from me. I was standing at the place of occurrence twenty minutes before the occurrence. The police had recorded my statement on that day near the Sainik Rest House. After 5/6 days of the occurrence, I learnt that Varinder Singh accused present in the Court was driver of the truck. At the spot, Avtar Singh was standing along with me. The name of the driver was disclosed to me by the police. I do not know when Avtar Singh learnt the name of the driver of the truck.” Avtar Singh appeared as PW-2. In cross examination, he stated that the accused was not known to him before the accident. It was not in his knowledge as to when and from where the accused was arrested. He had learnt the name of the driver ten days after the accident. Then stated that he had learnt about the name of driver after 4/5 days from Sukh Ram. Dr.Munish Kumar appeared as PW-3. He had conducted autopsy on the dead body of Kulwant Singh. Davinder Singh PW-4 was a photographer. He proved the photographs Ex.P1 to Ex.P7 and their negatives as Ex.P8 to Ex.P14. Constable Satnam Singh appeared as PW-5. He had conducted the mechanical test of the offending truck and the scooter, and submitted his reports Ex.PW5/A and Ex.PW5/B. I have heard counsel for the parties. Criminal Revision No. 816 of 2002 4 In the present case, the statement leading to registration of the FIR was recorded by ASI Sukh Ram. The person, who recorded the statement, had not been examined. In the FIR, the name of the driver of offending vehicle had not been mentioned. PW-1 Kuldip Singh, brother of the deceased Kulwant Singh, had stated that the name of the driver was not know to him but the same was relayed to him after 5/6 days by the police. To similar effect is the testimony of Avtar Singh PW-2. He also stated that Sukh Ram had disclosed the name of the driver of offending vehicle to him after 5/6 days of the occurrence. ASI Sukh Ram had not been examined. No test identification parade had been conducted. No driving licence or any other document had been recovered from the truck. There is no evidence with the prosecution to connect the accused with the crime or with the driver of the offending truck. In these circumstances, present revision petition is accepted and the petitioner is hereby acquitted of the charges. May 7, 2010 [KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA] JUDGE