PALA SINGH & ANR. versus STATE OF PUNJAB

Citation: [1973] 1 S.C.R. 964 · Decided: 23-08-1972 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: J.M. SHELAT · Disposal: Dismissed
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Judgment (excerpt)

964 
PALA SINGH & ANR. 
v. 
STATE OF PUNJAB 
A1!gust 23, 1972 
[J.M. SHELAT, I. D. DUA AND H. R. KHANNA, JJ.] 
Code of Criminal Procedure s. 417-Appeal in High Court against 
acquittal by trial court-High Court's pawer to 
reverse 
judgment of 
.ac~uittal-Practice and procedure. 
Code of Criminal Procedure s. 157~Delay in sending occurrence re-
port 
to 1nagistrate-Whether whole investigation to be regarded as 
A 
B 
tainted. 
C 
Constitution of India 1950, Art. 136-Interference by Supreme Court 
when justified. 
The appellants along with some other accused were tried for murder 
under s. 302 I.P.C. and connected offences. They were acquitted by the 
Sessions Judge. 
The High Court reversing the judgment of acquittal 
convicted the appellants. 
In appeal before this Court under article 136 
of the Constitution it was contended that in . appraising the evidence the 
High Court had not followed the principles laid down by this Court in 
Sanwant Singh and other cases. 
· 
Dismissing tho apl'.eal, 
( 
HELD : (i} The contention that because the judgment of the trial 
court prima facie seemed reasonable there was no scope for 
reassess-
ment of the evidence by the High Court was unacceptable. 
The Court 
of appeal has full power under the statute to go into the entire evidence 
and all the relevant circumstances of the case for coming to its own con-
clusion about the guilt or innocence of the ::ccused bearing in mind the 
initial presumption of the innocence of the accused person and the ·fact 
that he was acquitted by the trial court. The High Court in the present 
case did not commit any error in the appraisal of the evidence on the 
record and in arriving at its own conclusion as to the guilt of the appel-
lants. 'Ibe criticism about the insertion of s. 120B in the site plan might 
raise a slight upjcion but in view of the trustwortbine!s of the prose-' 
cution evidence fed in the case that could not in any way justify any 
grave susp;cion of the prosecution story. It could not be said that the 
High Court had not followed the principles laid down in Sanwant Singh's 
case nor were its conclusions so erroneous as to justify interference by 
this Court under Art. 136 of the Constitution. [971-F-H; 972A-B] 
Sa11want Singh v. State of Rajasthan, [1961] 3 S.C.R. 120, Rambfia-
pa/a Reddy v. S'late of A.P., A.LR. 1971 S.C. 46 and Bansidhal' M~hanty 
v. Store of Orissa, A.I.R. 1955 S.C. 585, considered and ~pplied. 
(ii) Section 157 Cr. P.C. requires an occurrence report to be sent 
forthwith by the police officer concerned to a magistrate empowered to 
take congnizance of the offence.· Thfa is really designed 
to keep 
th.e 
magistrate informed of the investigation of such cognizable offence so as 
to be able to control th!' investigation and if necessary to give appro-
priate direction under s. 159. But wlten it was found in the present case 
that the F.l.R. was actually recorded without delay and the investigation 
started on the basis of the F.I.R. and thero wos no other infirmity brought 
D 
E 
F 
G 
H 
i 
A 
PALA SINGH v. PUNJAB (Dua, J,) 
965 
to the Court's notiC'c, then, however,. in1proper or objectionable the delay-
ed receipt of the report by the mag.c•ute concerned it could not by itself 
justify the conclusion that th~ invostigation was tainted and the prosecu-
tion insupportable. It was not the appellants' case that they had been 
prejudicial by this delay. (970 C-E] 
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Criminal Appeal No. 
B 
197 of 1969. 
c 
D 
E 
F 
G 
H 
Appeal by special leave from the judgment and order dated 
May 15, 1969 of the Punjab and Haryana High Court at Chandi-
garh in Criminal Appeal No. 385 of 1967. 
R. L. Kohli, R. C. Kohli and J. C. Ta]war, for the appellants. 
Harbans Singh and R. N. Sachthey, for the respondents. 
The Judgment of the Coun was delivered by 
Dua, J. 
This appeal by special leave under Art. 136 of the 
Constitution of India is directed against the judgment dated May 
16; 1969 of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana allowing in 
part the State appeal from 1 he order of Shri Kartar Singh, Addi-
tional Sessions Judge, J ullundur, acquitting the five accused charged 
under ss. 302, 302/34, 120B and 302/309, I.P.C. and convicting 
on appeal Trilok Singh and Pala Singh, appellants, the former under 
s. 302, I.P.C. and the latter under s. 302 read with s. 34, l.P.C. 
They were both sentenced to imprisonment for life. 
The facts giving rise to this appeal briefly stated are that Atma 
Si
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