[1] CAUSE TITLE Sessions Case No. 128/05 Informant: Sri Bhaskar Konwar, S/o- Sri Mohendra Konwar, R/o- Pulungani Gaon, PS- Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. Accused Persons: (1) Sri Titu Ruhi Das, (2) Sri Dulal Gogoi, S/o- Late Haren Das, S/o- Sri Mukheswar Gogoi, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. District- Dibrugarh. (3) Sri Sanjit Gogoi @ Papi, (4) Sri Bikash Chowdhury, S/o- Sri Parama Gogoi, S/o-Sri Munindra Chawdhury R/o- Ghurania Gaon, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. District- Dibrugarh. (5) Sri Mukut Gogoi, (6) Sri Baba Chowdhury, S/o- Sri Biswanath Gogoi, S/o- Sri Khagen Chawdhary, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. District- Dibrugarh. (7) Sri Mintu Gogoi, (8) Sri Santanu Gogoi, S/o- Sri Parama Gogoi, S/o- Bireswar Gogoi, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, R/o- Ghurania Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. District- Dibrugarh. (9) Sri Suraj Gogoi, S/o- Sri Nitul Gogoi, R/O. Phulangani Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. Continued to page No. 2. [2] (10) Sri Bidyut Bikash Gogoi (11) Sri Hemanta Gogoi, @ Bubul, S/o-Sri Sativam Gogoi, S/o- Sri Arup Gogoi, R/o-Na-Sripuria Gaon, R/o-Na-Sripuria Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh District- Dibrugarh. (12) Sri Budheswar Ghatowar, (13) Sri Mantu Chaudang, S/o-SriBiseswar Ghatowar, S/o- Sri Siba Chaudang, R/o-Jamaguri Gaon, R/o-Jamaguri Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. District- Dibrugarh. (14) Sri Kushal Gogoi, S/o- Late Nagen Gogoi, R/o-Jamaguri Gaon, P.S. - Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. 15) Sri Sanat Gogoi, S/o- Sri KushalGogoi R/o- Konwari Gaon, PS- Tingkhong, District- Dibrugarh. ADVOCATES:- For the prosecution : Mr. S. Bhuyan, learned Public Prosecutor. For the Defence : (1) Mr. G. Gogoi, learned Advocate. (2) Mr. A. Phukan, learned Advocate. (3) Mr. N. Jaiswal, learned Advocate. (4) Mr. D. Chetry, Learned Advocate. Continued to page No. 3. [3] IN THE COURT OF THE SESSIONS JUDGE AT DIBRUGARH :: Present : Smti. R. K. Phukan, AJS, Sessions Judge, Dibrugarh. Sessions Case No. 128/2005 G. R. Case No. 459/2003 State of Assam -Vs- Sri Titu Ruhi Das & 14 others ------ Accused Persons. Charge U/Ss. 143/148/427/302 r/w S. 149 IPC. Date of evidence on : 20.01.2006, 07.09.2007, 08.10.2007, 01.11.2007, 23.05.2008 28.11.2008, 02.01.2009, 25.08.2010, 02.05.2011, 20.06.2012, 10.07.2012, 19.10.2012, 17.06.2013, 19.08.2013, 02.09.2013, and 10.03.2014. Date of argument on : 22.04.2014 and 15.05.2014. Date of Judgment on : 29.05.2014 (Judgment could not be delivered as 4 Nos. accused persons did not turn up) Date of Judgment on : 06.06.2014. J U D G M E N T (1) This is a triple murder case of three sons of Mauzadar Mohendra Konwar of No. 2 Ghurania Gaon, a road side village of Moran Naharkatia road under Tingkhong police station, District- Dibrugarh. The said Mohendra Konwar has six sons namely Dilip Konwar, Tapan Konwar, Rajib Konwar, Pradip Konwar, Bhaskar Konwar and Souravh Konwar. Amongst the brothers Dilip Konwar, Tapan Konwar and Rajib Konwar were living together with their father in the same house while the other brother Souravh Konwar is Continued to page No. 4. [4] living in the same compound but in a separate house and Bhaskar Konwar and Pradip Konwar are living separately at a little distance from the house of their father in their individual houses. (2) It is the case of prosecution that on 14.04.2003 at about 7.30 p.m. the accused Sanjit @ Papi had a quarrel with Rajib Konwar in front of the house of Bhaskar Konwar. Again on the next day i.e. on 15.04.2003 the 1st day of Bohag Bihu at about 12.00 O’clock, on broad day light, all the accused persons armed with deadly weapon like Dao, Lathi, Axe etc. entered in to the house of Bhaskar Konwar and cut down several portion of the house including the gate, windows, trees etc. and also set fire to his Ambassador Car bearing No. NL-02-2699 and went out from his house. Thereafter at a little distance from his house on Naharkatia road, the accused persons cut his brothers, namely, Sri Dilip Konwar, Sri Tapan Konwar and Sri Rajib Konwar, who were coming to help him, and his brothers died on the spot for the injuries inflicted upon them. The matter was informed to Tingkhong police station by some other person namely Bubu Konwar of the locality and police hurriedly arrived at the place of occurrence after giving a G.D.E. being No. 250 dated 15.04.2003 and found three dead bodies of Dilip Konwar, Rajib Konwar and Tapan Konwa, lying at the Parbatipur Tiniali with severe cut injuries on their person. Inquest was made over the dead bodies and thereafter send the dead bodies for postmortem examination. In the mean time one brother of the deceased Bhaskar Konwar lodged the ejahar at 7.30 p.m. in the Tingkhong Police Station upon which a case was registered being Tingkhong P.S. Case No. 40/03 under Sections 147/148/149/447/302/427/435 IPC and the O/C himself taken up the investigation. He has already the visited the place of occurrence, so he adhered to further investigation and examined the witnesses, prepared a Sketch-Map of the place of occurrence, seized the weapon of offence, arrested the accused Continued to page No. 5. [5] persons, collected the Post-mortem Report and after completion of the investigation, he submitted Charge-Sheet against the accused persons under Sections 143/147/148/149/447/ 427/ 302 IPC. (3) The accused persons appeared before the learned Magistrate to face the trial and after furnishing the necessary copies, etc., to the accused persons, the case was committed to this Court being the offence triable exclusively by the Court of Sessions. (4) On appearance of the accused persons before this Court and after hearing the learned counsels for both the sides on the point of charge and considering the record, the statement of the witnesses and the documents referred U/S 173 CrPC, formal charge U/Ss. 143/148/427/ 302 r/w S. 149 IPC was framed and explained to the accused persons to which they pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried. One of the accused Pranjal Gogoi was absconder and another accused Arup Gogoi died in course of the trial. (5) In order to bring home the charge against the accused persons, prosecution examined as many as thirty three witnesses. Defence side examined five witnesses. The plea of the defence is of total denial. The accused persons in their statement recorded u/S 313 CrPC, denied the allegations made against them and pleaded that they are innocent. (6) I have heard argument of learned counsels for both the sides and gone through the record. POINTS FOR DETERMINATION (7) (i) Whether on 15-04-03, the accused persons were the members of an unlawful assembly with common object to assault and kill the three persons Dilip Konwar, Rajib Konwar and Tapan Konwar as alleged? (ii) Whether the accused persons were armed with deadly weapon while forming an unlawful assembly as alleged? (iii) Whether the accused persons committed mischief by Continued to page No. 6. [6] causing wrongful loss or damage to the property of the informant Bhaskar Konwar as alleged? (iv) Whether the accused persons committed murder of Sri Dilip Konwar, Sri Rajib Konwar and Sri Tapan Konwar alleged? (v) Whether the accused persons were member of an unlawful assembly in prosecution of the common object to kill the above mentioned persons as alleged? DECISION AND REASONS THEREOF: (8) On categorization of the evidence on record, we will find that there are five numbers of eye witnesses to the occurrence who were the family members of the deceased persons named below. PW-1 Smti. Ranjani Konwar, wife of Sourabh Konwar (Sister- in-law of deceased persons) PW-2 Smti Tapasini Konwar, minor daughter of deceased Tapan Konwar PW-3 Smti. Jyoti Konwar, wife of deceased Tapan Konwar PW-4 Smti. Anjumoni Konwar, wife of deceased Rajib Konwar PW-12 Sri Kalyanmoy Konwar, son of deceased Dilip Konwar (9) There are nineteen numbers of independent witnesses who has deposed that they do not know any thing about the occurrence save and except the findings of three dead bodies lying at the place of occurrence. Some other witnesses has stated about the occurrence in the house of Bhaskar Konwar and some other persons arrived at the place of occurrence after the incident and supported the circumstances and facts happened in the house of informant. Rest are the official witness like M.O. and I.O. (10) The sister-in-law of the deceased persons and the informant, Smti. Ranjani Konwar/PW-1 has deposed that on 1st day of Bohag Month in the year 2003, around 11:30 am, prior to the occurrence, Continued to page No. 7. [7] her mother-in-law, Smti. Swarnalata Konwar told her that Dilip had gone out with a gun in his hand to the house of Bhaskar. While she went to make a call over phone and reached near the house of Deben Konwar, she heard halla.