Shri Disi Pegu vs State of Assam

This appeal is filed against the judgment and order, dated 3.12.2008, passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Dhemaji, in Sessions Case No.

30(JN)/2007, convicting the accused appellant under Section 25(1-B) of the Arms Act to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 1 year and to pay a

fine of Rs. 1,000/- with a default clause.

The fact leading to the case is that, on 2.5.2002, the In-charge of Simen Chapori Police Outpost received a confidential information from source

that a gang of dacoits, equipped with arms, had taken shelter at Dekapam area. On receipt of such information, a GD Entry was made and the

police went to Dekapam area, and there the police noticed that 6-7 youths were hiding under the bridge were running away. They tried to chase

the youths but others fled away except one Mohesh Swargiary @ Mon Boro, who was caught by the police. On interrogation, he disclosed the

name of the other accused persons as well as the fact that they had gathered there to commit dacoity and also disclosed that the arms and

ammunitions were kept in the house of one Umesh Doley. Police arrested said Umesh Doley and seized some arms and ammunitions from him as

indicated in the seizure list. Thereafter, an FIR was lodged by the In-charge Simen Chapori Police Outpost which was registered a Jonai PS Case

No. 53/2002, under Section 399 read with Section 25(1-B)/27 of the Arms Act.

After completion of the investigation, charge-sheet was filed against the 6 accused persons.

Learned trial court of Sessions Judge, Dhemaji, after exhausting all the required legal formalities, framed a formal charge against the accused-

appellant and others under Section 399 IPC read with Sections 25(1-A) and 25(1-B) of the Arms Act, to which they pleaded not guilty, hence the

trial commenced.

The prosecution examined 7 (seven) witnesses. After closure of the prosecution evidence, statements of the accused persons were recorded

under Section 313 Cr.PC wherein they are found to have denied the accusations made against them. The defence examined none.

After conclusion of the trial, learned Sessions Judge, Dhemaji, convicted and sentenced the accused persons as indicated above.

I have scanned the evidence on record.

None appears for the appellant. I have heard Mr. B.J. Dutta, learned Additional Public Prosecutor. I have also perused the record of the

learned trial court including the evidence and propose to dispose of the appeal on merit on the basis of evidence on record.

PW6 initially investigated the case before the formal FIR was lodged and had apprehended one of the accused persons, namely, Mohesh

Swargiary @ Mon Boro, on whose information, he recovered some arms and ammunitions from the house of co-accused Umesh Doley. PW2,

PW3, PW4 and PW5 are the seizure witnesses and none of them are found to have led evidence implicating the present accused-appellant rather

the evidence to the fact that PW6 seized the arms and ammunitions from one accused Umesh Doley although the seized articles were not shown to

them and only their signatures were obtained. PW6 and PW7 are the official witnesses, being police personnel, who had taken part in the

investigation of the case. It transpires from the impugned judgment itself, paragraph-10 particularly, that the decisions is based on the recovery of

the arms but the fact remains that the person, from whom the arms and ammunitions had been allegedly recovered, were all acquitted by the

learned trial court.

On examination of the whole evidence on record, this court does not find any implicating materials against the present accused-appellant and

hold him not guilty of the commission of offences under which he is charged.

It is a case of absence of evidence, and therefore, further discussion on the evidence on record is not necessary to hold that the accused-

appellant is not guilty of offence alleged against him.

That being so, the appeal is allowed.

The judgment of the learned court of Sessions Judge, Dhemaji, in Sessions Case No. 30(JN)/2007, is set aside.

Send down the LCR along with a copy of this judgment.