Srinagar: The High Court on Wednesday upheld the life sentence of a Hizbul Mujahideen militant convicted of killing a man working for CIB in a village in the south Kashmir district of Kulgam two decades ago.
Justices Vinod Chatterji Koul and Mohan Lal while dismissing the appeal by the Abdul Hamid Teeli against the judgment of the Principal District Sessions Judge Kulgam said: “the conviction and sentence rendered by the trial court for commission of offence u/s 302/452/34 RPC r/w 7/25 of Arms Act against appellant/convict stands upheld and confirmed.”
The division bench observed: “after churning the entire prosecution evidence once again by us, being the First Court of Appeal, we are of the considered view that the prosecution has been able to prove the charges punishable u/s 302/452/34 RPC r/w 7/25 of Arms Act against appellant beyond any reasonable doubt, and therefore, his conviction for the said charges deserves to be upheld.”
Deposing before the court, prosecution witness (number 3) Mst Rehmati, mother of the deceased had said that Teeli had pumped bullets into her son’s — Nazir Ahmed Wagay @ Galwan – body in her presence even as she has pleaded with the killer that her son, who worked in CIB, be spared. .
“With folded hands I requested Teeli to pardon my son; but he murdered him and ran away from the spot,” he has said.
She also told the court that while Teeli murdered her son inside their home, the other accused Rafiq Wani was standing outside.
During the investigation, it was established by the statements of eye-witnesses that the accused Teeli and Rafiq Ahmed Wani were the “active militants” of Hizbul Mujahideen. They had committed the offence.
Subsequently, accused Rafiq Ahmed Wani was killed in an encounter with security forces on September 10, 2002 at Danew Kandiwmarg — as such his name was deleted from the charge-sheet.
The critical appraisal of the depositions of defence witnesses, clearly establish that occurrence has taken place in the house of the deceased, said the judges.
They observed “although the defence witnesses have tried their utmost to put forth evidence that they have not identified the appellant firing upon the deceased, but in view of the cogent, trustworthy and reliable evidence led by the eye witnesses PWs 3&4 namely, Mst Rehmati & Mst Rafiqa and corroborated by medical evidence of Dr Mohammad Yousuf, there is no reason for us to disbelieve their testimonies.”
There is overwhelming evidence on record to show that the incident had taken place in village Bagbal D H Pora, District Kulgam. “Once the genesis of the occurrence has been proved by the prosecution, evidence in the case in hand, where the defence evidence does not dispute the occurrence, would not be sufficient to dispel the entire prosecution case,” the court said.
