Jailal Pando Vs State of Chhattisgarh

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2026:CGHC:16069

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NAFR

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HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR

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Criminal Appeal No.528 of 2026

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Jailal Pando S/o Late Budhram Pando Aged About 60 Years R/o Village Bahalpur, Pandopara, Police Station- Khadgawan, DistrictM.C.B. (CG) ... Appellant

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versus

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State Of Chhattisgarh Through- The Station House Officer, Police Station- Khadgawan, District- M.C.B. (CG) ... Respondent

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For Appellant : Shri Vikrant Pillay, Advocate through Legal Aid.

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For Respondent/State : Ms. Vithika Choubey, PL.

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Hon'ble Shri Justice Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal Judgment on Board

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08.04.2026

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SISTLA NEELIMA VISHNU PRIYA

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Digitally signed by SISTLA NEELIMA VISHNU PRIYA Date: 2026.04.09 10:55:05 +0530

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The present Criminal Appeal under Section 415(2) of Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 has been preferred by Appellant

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against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 15.10.2025 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Chirmiri, District Korea, (CG) in Sessions Case No.108/2023, whereby the

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Appellant has been convicted and sentenced as under:

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Conviction	:	Sentence
Under Section 326	RI for 3 years	with fine of Rs.100/-,
IPC	in default of	payment of fine,
	additional RI for	5 days.

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The prosecution case, in brief, is that on 07.08.2023 at about 7:00 AM, the complainant along with others went to Ghoda Pathra forest and found his father Patiraj Singh lying unconscious in a drain with multiple injuries on his head near the right eye and on the little finger of his left hand, bleeding. At the spot, blood-stained articles including an umbrella, slippers, a white gamcha and a tobacco pouch with a cloth bag belonging to the victim were found. It is alleged that the present Appellant assaulted the victim with a tangi with intent to kill him. The injured was taken by 108 ambulance to Hospital, Khadgawan for treatment and subsequently, an offence was registered against the present Appellant at Police Station Khadgawan and after investigation, charge-sheet was filed.

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The prosecution has in all examined 9 witnesses and exhibited 18 documents to prove its case. The accused was examined under Section 313 CrPC wherein he pleaded innocence

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and false implication. After conclusion of trial, considering the evidence of prosecution witnesses and material available on record, learned Trial Court by impugned judgment, convicted and sentenced the Appellant, as mentioned above.

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At this stage, learned Counsel for the Appellant submits that he does not challenge the finding of conviction and confines his argument to the sentence part only, which according to him is on higher side . He further submits that the occurrence is related to the year 2023 and the detention period of the accused Appellant during trial is 1 year 2 months and 12 days and his total custody period is 1 year 8 months and 8 days out of total sentence of 3 years' RI. He further submits that the Appellant is presently in jail, there are no criminal antecedents against him and prays that the sentence awarded to him for the aforesaid offence may be reduced to the period already undergone by him.

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Per contra, learned State Counsel supports the impugned judgment and opposes the arguments advanced on behalf of the Appellant. She, however, submits that there are no previous criminal antecedents against the present Appellant.

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I have heard learned counsel for the parties and have also perused the material available on record including the impugned judgment.

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Having gone through the material available on record and the statements of witnesses, particularly the doctor i.e. Dr. Manish Pratap Singh (PW-7), who stated that the injured had swelling on the posterior aspect of the head, an incised wound measuring 5 × 2 cm above the left shoulder with active bleeding, another incised wound measuring 4 × 1 cm on the left side of the head with active bleeding, an incised wound measuring 4 × 1 cm on the left thumb, from which blood was oozing and the left hand little finger was found amputated and bleeding, this Court does not find any illegality or infirmity in the findings recorded by the trial Court as regards the conviction of the Appellant for the offence mentioned above, which is hereby affirmed.

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As regards sentence, in Mohammad Giasuddin v. State of Andhra Pradesh reported in (1977) 3 SCC 287 , Hon’ble Supreme Court has observed that if you are to punish a man retributively, you must injure him. If you are to reform him, you must improve him and, men are not improved by injuries and held in para-9 as follows:

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“9 . Western jurisprudes and 'sociologists, from their own angle have struck a like note. Sir Samual Romilly, critical of the brutal penalties in the then Britain, said in 1817 :

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"The laws of England are written in blood". Alfieri has suggested : 'society prepares the crime, the criminal commits it’. George Nicodotis, Director of Criminological Research

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Centre, Athens, Greece, maintains that 'Crime is the result of the lack of the right kind of education.' It is thus plain that crime is a pathological aberration, that the criminal can ordinarily be redeemed, that the State has to rehabilitate rather than avenge. The sub-culture that leads to anti-social behaviour has to be countered not by undue cruelty but by reculturisation. Therefore, the focus of interest in penology is the individual, and goal is salvaging him for society. The infliction of harsh and savage punishment is thus a relic of past and regressive times. The human today views sentencing as a process of reshaping a person who has deteriorated into criminality and the modern community has a primary stake in the rehabilitation of the offender as a means of social defense. We, therefore consider a therapeutic, rather than an in 'terrorem' outlook, should prevail in our criminal courts, since brutal incarceration of the person merely produces laceration of his mind. In the words of George Bernard Shaw : 'If you are to punish a man retributively, you must injure him. If you are to reform him, you must improve him and, men are not improved by injuries'. We may permit ourselves the liberty to quote from Judge Sir Jeoffrey Streatfield : “If you are going to have anything to do with the criminal Courts, you should see for yourself the conditions under which prisoners serve their sentences.”

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Applying the analogy laid down in Mohammad Giasuddin (supra) and keeping in view the fact that the maximum sentence imposed upon the Appellant is 3 years under Section 326 IPC and as per the Arrest Memo (Ex.P-9), the Appellant is an illiterate and by profession he is an agriculturist and there are no criminal antecedents against him and thus looking to the over-all circumstances, it will be just and proper if the sentence of 3 years

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RI awarded by the trial court for offence under section 326 IPC is reduced to 2 years’ RI. Accordingly, The conviction 326 IPC is maintained and the sentence is reduced from 3 years to that of 2 years. However, the fine amount is enhanced from Rs. 100/- to Rs.5,000/-. It is further directed that upon deposit of the said fine amount, the same shall be paid to the victim-Patiraj Singh.

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In the result, the Appeal is allowed in part to the extent indicated here-in-above.

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The Appellant’s custody period (1 year 8 months and 8 days) shall be entitled to set-off of the said period against the sentence of 2 years’ RI. Any fine amount already deposited by the Appellant shall be adjusted towards the enhanced fine amount.

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Let a certified copy of this judgment along with the original record be transmitted to the concerned trial Court forthwith for information and necessary action. A copy of this judgment be also sent to the concerned Superintendent of Jail where the Appellant is undergoing jail sentence. Sd/-

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(Sanjay Kumar Jaiswal) Judge

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Priya

Jailal Pando v. State of Chhattisgarh

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Jailal Pando v. State of Chhattisgarh

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