Partly allowed

Gopal Krishna v. State

Rajasthan HC4 Dec 2024CRLR/1297/2006

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

This criminal revision petition assailed the conviction and sentence for offences under Sections 457 and 380 IPC. Upholding the conviction, the High Court reduced the sentence to the period already undergone by the petitioner as the case was old and he had suffered mental agony, suspending the sentence.

What did the court decide?

Sentence reduced to the period already undergone; sentence suspended; petitioner on bail; bail bonds cancelled.

Gopal Krishna Vs State — Criminal Trial and Appeal | Rajasthan HC (2024)

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[2024:RJ-JP:49993]

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HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN BENCH AT JAIPUR

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S.B. Criminal Revision Petition No. 1297/2006

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Gopal Krishna S/o Durga Shankar, R/o Jhalrapatan, PS Khalrapatan, District Jhalawar-At present confined in District Jail Jhalawar.

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----Petitioner

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Versus

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State of Rajasthan, through PP

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----Respondent

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For Petitioner(s) : Ms. Poonam Yadav For Respondent(s) : Mr. Amit Punia, PP

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HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE GANESH RAM MEENA

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Order

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04/12/2024

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The present criminal revision petition has been filed by the accused- petitioner under Section 397 read with Section 401 of CrPC assailing the judgment of conviction and sentence dated 31.08.2005 passed by the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jhalawar (for short ‘the trial Court’) in Case No.689/2004, whereby the trial Court convicted the accused-petitioner for the offence punishable u/S 457 & 380 IPC. The petitioner had further challenged the aforesaid order/judgment dated 31.08.2005 passed by the trial Court by filing a Criminal Appeal bearing No.83/2005 before the Court of Special Judge SC/ST Cases, Jhalawar, whereby the learned Court vide order dated 19.04.2006 had dismissed the appeal filed by the accused petitioner and affirmed the order passed by the trial Court.

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Learned counsel for the revisionist- petitioner submits that the present matter pertains to an incident which occurred in year 2004 and this revision petition has been pending since year 2006. Counsel makes only a limited prayer that without making any interference on merits/conviction, the sentence awarded to the present revisionist-petitioner may be substituted with the period of sentence already undergone by him, which is about 17 months.

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Learned Public Prosecutor has vehemently opposed the prayer made by learned counsel for the revisionist-petitioner.

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Heard. Perused the record.

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In Mohd. Firoz Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh (Criminal Appeal No.612/2019, decided on 19.04.2022), wherein the Hon’ble Apex Court, owing to the special facts & circumstances of the case, while reducing the sentence for offences under the relevant Section of the concerned Statute, observed as under:-

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“43………….we are reminded of what Oscar Wilde has said -“The only difference between the saint and the sinner is that every saint has a past and every sinner has a future”. One of the basic principles of restorative justice as developed by this Court over the years, also is to give an opportunity to the offender to repair the damage caused, and to become a socially useful individual, when he is released from the jail. The maximum punishment prescribed may not always be the determinative factor for repairing the crippled psyche of the offender.”

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(Emphasis supplied)

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This Court, therefore, observes, as is revealed hereinabove, that the Hon’ble Apex Court, in the case of Mohd. Firoz (supra), held that the Court may, in the interest of justice, reduce the sentence awarded to the accused. More so, this would be directed when the matter is an old one, and a deserving case at that, to

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reduce the sentence awarded to an accused person, to the time/sentence already served by him. Similarly, in special acts, with regard to the age/pendency of the matter, depending on the facts & circumstances of the case, this Court may deem it a fit case for applying the same aforementioned principle to reduce the sentence awarded to the period already undergone by him.

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This Court is conscious of the judgments rendered in Alister Anthony Pareira Vs. State of Maharashtra (2012) 2 SCC 648 and Haripada Das Vs. State of W.B. (1998) 9 SCC 678, wherein the Hon’ble Apex Court observed as under:-

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Alister Anthony Pareira (Supra)

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“There is no straitjacket formula for sentencing an accused on proof of crime. The courts have evolved certain principles: twin objective of the sentencing policy is deterrence and correction. What sentence would meet the ends of justice depends on the facts and circumstances of each case and the court must keep in mind the gravity of the crime, motive for the crime, nature of the offence and all other attendant circumstances.”

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Haripada Das (Supra)

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“...considering the fact that the respondent had already undergone detention for some period and the case is pending for a pretty long time for which he had suffered both financial hardship and mental agony and also considering the fact that he had been released on bail as far back as on 17-1-1986, we feel that the ends of justice will be met in the facts of the case if the sentence is reduced to the period already undergone...”

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This High Court in the case of Jiyaram Devasi & Anr. Vs.

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State of Rajasthan passed in S.B. Criminal Revision Petition

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No.400 of 1998, decided on 15.07.2019, (2019(3) Cr.L.R.

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(Raj.) 1415) , has observed as under:

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“11. It is not disputed that the occurrence has taken place in the year 1994 and the accusedpetitioners have so far undergone a period of one month and eleven days incarceration out of total sentence, and so also suffered the agony and

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trauma of protracted trial. Thus, looking to the over-all circumstances and the fact that the accused-petitioners have remained behind the bars for considerable time, it will be just and proper if the sentence awarded by the trial court for offence under Sections 341, 323 and 326 IPC and affirmed by the appellate court is reduced to the period already undergone by them while increasing the amount of fine.

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12. Accordingly, the criminal revision is partly allowed. While maintaining the petitioners’ conviction and sentence for offence under Sections 341, 323 & 326 IPC, the sentence awarded to them for aforesaid offence is hereby reduced to the period already undergone. The amount of fine of Rs.200/- imposed for offence u/S 341 IPC and Rs.500/- imposed for offence u/S 323 IPC is hereby maintained, however the amount of fine of Rs.1,000/- imposed for offence u/S 326 IPC is increased to Rs.2,000/-, in total each of the accused-petitioners is liable to pay a sum of Rs.2,700/- as fine. Two month’s time is granted to deposit the fine before the trial court. In default of payment of fine, the petitioners shall undergo two months simple imprisonment. The petitioners are on bail. Their bail bonds stand discharged. The record of the courts below be sent back forthwith.”

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The present matter pertains to an incident which occurred in year 2004 and this revision petition has been pending since year 2006. The petitioner is said to be living peacefully in the intervening period and no adverse material or other criminal case is found to be registered against the petitioner. The petitioner has already remained in custody for about 17 months, as evident from the custody certificate submitted by the learned Public Prosecutor.

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Hence, in light of the limited prayer made on behalf of the accused petitioner and keeping in mind the aforementioned precedent laws, the present revision petition is partly allowed. Accordingly, while maintaining the conviction of the petitioner for the offence u/S 457 & 380 IPC, the sentence awarded to the revisionist-petitioner is reduced to the period already undergone

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by him. The sentence of the accused petitioner was suspended and he is on bail. He need not to surrender and his bail bonds stand cancelled.

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