PATNA, India, Oct. 24 -- Patna High Court issued the following judgment on Sept. 25:

Heard Mr. Ajay Kumar Thakur with Mr. Ritwik Thakur, Ms. Vaishnavi Singh with Ms. Kiran Kumari, learned counsel for the appellant and Mrs. Anita Kumari Singh, learned APP for the State.

2. Learned counsel for the appellant submits that vide order dated 05.12.2024, the present appeal has been abated against appellant Nos.2 and 3 due to their death and presently this appeal is continuing against appellant No.1 only.

3. Counsel further submits that the present appellant has already been convicted for 8 years and he has completely served the said sentence and then come out from jail, but the present appeal has been challenged against the order of conviction only.

4. Counsel further submits that section 374 of the Cr.P.C., 1973 describes about the appeal about conviction. He further submits that section 374(2) of the Cr.P.C. categorically described that the circumstances under which any person convicted on trial may appeal to the High Court. He further submits that the present appeal is maintainable and it is due to this reason that appellant has preferred appeal against the conviction only and not against sentence, as he has already served the sentence. In support of his contention, counsel relied on judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in case of Gurjant Singh Vs. the State of Punjab decided on 13.11.2021 in Criminal Appeal Nos.1385-1386 of 2021.

5. Counsel further submits that in this appeal, the order passed by the Hon'ble High Court of Punjab and Haryana, Chandigarh has been challenged before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India, in which criminal appeal was rendered infructuous, due to the reason that the appellant has served out the sentence, on which Hon'ble Supreme Court of India has pleased to held that the criminal appeal could not have been dismissed as infructuous and remanded back the matter before the High Court to decide on merit.

6. Counsel further relied on another reported judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in case of Dhananjay Rai Vs. State of Bihar reported in MANU/SC/0888/2022 and submits that it has been held in the present case that a criminal appeal may not be dismissed on any ground even if the accused was absconding.

7. Learned APP for the State on the point of maintainability submits that prima facie, there is subsistence in the argument of counsel for the appellant, and hence, the present appeal is maintainable even if there is no whereabout of the appellant in the present case as reported by the police in its report.

The rest of the document can be viewed at https://patnahighcourt.gov.in/viewjudgment/MjQjMTA0OCMyMDA2IzEjTg==-9WM3Q1--am1--oqo8=

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