CUTTACK, India, April 18 -- Orissa High Court issued the following order on March 17:

1. Both the aforementioned Criminal Appeals are arising out of the common judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 14.11.1995 passed by the learned Assistant Sessions Judge, Athagarh in S.T. Case No.282 of 1993 whereby two appellants in Criminal Appeal No.307 of 1995 have been convicted for the offence punishable under Section 395 of the IPC and sentenced to undergo R.I. for seven years and to pay a fine of Rs.300/- (Rupees three hundred) in default to undergo R.I. for two months each whereas the sole appellant in Criminal Appeal No.135 of 1996 Tukuna @ Sujit Kumar Khuntia has also been convicted for the offence punishable under Section 395 of the IPC besides the offence punishable under Section 27 of the Arms Act. Apart from sentencing him to undergo R.I. for seven years for the offence under Section 395 of the IPC, he was additionally sentenced to undergo R.I. for three years for the offence punishable under Section 27 of the Arms Act and to pay a fine of Rs.500/- (Rupees five hundred) on both the counts, in default, to undergo R.I. for three months.

2. In CRA No.135 of 1996, consistently, none appeared for the appellant. Therefore, Mrs. Shuvra Mohapatra, Advocate, who was present in the Court, was requested by the Court to assist in the matter in the capacity of Amicus Curiae. She has readily agreed to the same.

Heard Mr. Debi Prasad Pattnaik, learned counsel appearing for the appellants in CRA No.307 of 1995 and Mrs. Shuvra Mohapatra, learned Amicus Curiae appearing for the appellant in CRA No.135 of 1996 and Mr. Jateswar Nayak, learned Additional Government Advocate for the State.

3. The prosecution alleged that on 19.09.1992, after taking dinner, the informant Bidyadhar Pradhan, his parents, wife and children slept in their house. In the midnight, the mother of the informant woke up to attend the call of nature. When she opened the back door, the culprits forcibly entered her house and threatened the parents and God mother of the informant on the point of knife and subsequently one of the culprits assaulted and threatened the informant and his wife and other culprits entered the room and removed the articles by breaking the boxes and trunks. They also threatened the informant and his wife by pointing knife and asked for the valuables including Hanuman coin. The culprits had removed two gold ring, one gold necklace, one broken tika, two gold ear rings, one gold big ring, one small ring, some gold pieces, some gold pieces including two gold barada fala, two ear rings, a pair of silver paunji, one silver armlet, one silver coin, two gold nose rings, one 100 rupees note, 12 numbers of two rupee coin.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/ecourtindiaHC/cases/display_pdf.php?filename=cB5596dui5WUK%2Fjt%2BZW%2FNmb%2BAQHr%2Fx2X6%2FVp6lXcklPU5NwjzG2kMzFICEDctmH9&caseno=CRA/307/1995&cCode=1&cino=ODHC010002021995&state_code=11&appFlag=)

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.