JUDGEMENT
S.B. SINHA, J. -
(1.)The appellant no.1 herein alongwith one Shaik Abdul Rahman, accused no. 3 were convicted for commission of an offence under Section 302 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and appellant no. 2 herein was convicted under Section 302 IPC. They were prosecuted for committing murder of one Mohammad Rafiq Khan on 14.6.1998. The said offence was said to have been committed during the period between 10.30 p.m. of 14.8.1998 to 5.00 a.m. on 15.6.1998. The deceased was a motor mechanic. He and the appellant no. 1 herein were friends. The appellant no. 2 and two other accused were said to be his followers. A quarrel allegedly took place between the deceased on the one side and the appellants on the other at about 9 p.m. on the said date near a theatre known as Durga Talkies in the town of Kothagudem. The quarrel, according to PW 8 -Routu Narendra, who was himself a jeep driver and parked his vehicle near the aforementioned theatre, was on two counts: (1) the jeep of the appellant no. 1 had not been satisfactorily repaired by the deceased, although he had taken repair charges in respect thereof; and (2) the deceased was visiting a woman called Gugloth Dasli, who was said to be his concubine, upon being questioned in that behalf by the first appellant, the deceased, allegedly, retorted that he had been paying money to the said Dasli and, therefore, no one could stop him from visiting her, whereupon he was allegedly threatened. The parties exchanged hot words but PW 8 - Routu Narendra and others are said to have intervened. The deceased thereafter left for his residence in an auto. According to the prosecution, at about 10.30 p.m. on the same night, the appellant no. 1 went to the house of the deceased and called him on the ground that his jeep required some repairs. PW 1 -Md. Anwar Khan, the elder brother of the deceased was said to be present. He came out with him from the residence and allegedly saw the appellant no. 1 on the road. He stated that on the body of auto the word 'Swathi' was inscribed. He furthermore, is said to have noticed the other two appellants, i.e. appellant nos. 2 and 3 standing by its side. The deceased and the appellants herein are said to have walked away. At about 5.00 a.m. in the next morning, PW 2 -Mohd. Mohammod Khan, another brother of the deceased returned home from his workshop. Upon an inquiry having been made as to whether the deceased had visited the workshop on the previous night alongwith the appellant, he answered in the negative. The dead body was noticed by PW 4 -A. Venkateswarlu in the morning in front of his house. As the deceased was known to PW 4, he went to PW 1 and informed thereabout. They came to the spot whereafter PW 1 rushed to the town police station of Kothagudem Town. He, however, did not enter the police station. He was standing on the road before the police station. PW 5 -J. Srinivas, at about 6.00 a.m. was passing by the said police station for shopping, PW 1 requested him to scribe a report on his behalf describing the incident. PW 5 accordingly scribed a report, which reads as under :
"Yesterday, i.e. on 14.6.1998 at about 10.30 night time while I was at my resident along with my brother by name Rafeek Khan. One Ramreddy Rajeshkhanna came to my residence and called my brother then my brother came outside. I had also followed him and questioned my brother as to where you are going for which my brother told me that Rajeskhanna wanted to get his jeep urgently repair by that time one auto was standing at a distance to my house. On the top of the auto there was a name "Swathi" written in Telugu, by the side of auto one Bankur Ravi, Machaboina Ramesh, S.K. Abdul Rahman @ Nathi Babu were standing; after some time the abovesaid four persons and my brother left the place in auto towards coolie line main road. My brother didn't return back on that night. Today, i.e. on 15.06.1998 early in the morning at about 5.00 a.m. I asked my third brother by name Mohd. Khan about Rafeek Khan whether he was at the shed on the night for which he replied that he didn't came to shed on the night. At about 5.30 a.m. one coolie line native by name Agulla Venkateswarlu came to me and said that my brother was found dead in front of his house and said that there was a bleeding injury on the neck. Then I along with Venkateswarlu went and found the dead body of my brother in front of Venkateswarlu's house. Neck of my brother was cutted half caushing death of my brother is that there was some galata taken place in between my brother and with Ramreddy Rajeshkhanna; Bankur Ravi; Manchaboina Ramesh; SK Abdul Rahman @ Nathi Babu which taken place to Durga Talkies Centre of previous night and the said incident took place regarding repair of jeep, bearing the same in mind on the point of jeep repair taking my brother out side the house and killed him."
(2.)The said Abdul Rahman was said to have been arrested from the house of appellant no. 2 on 1.7.1998. PW 5 -J. Srinivas, however, states that when he was scribing the First Information Report (FIR), the appellants were already in the lockup. The FIR was said to have been dispatched immediately. Post -mortem examination on the dead body of the deceased started from 11.00 a.m. and was completed at about 1.30 p.m. In the post -mortem report it was opined that rigor morits was confined to upper and lower limbs and presumably on the basis thereof the death was found to have taken place between 12.00 to 15.00 hours.
(3.)Before the learned Sessions Judge several witnesses were examined to prove the prosecution case.