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13. On the other hand, learned APP for the State submitted that the impugned judgment of the learned Trial Court is based on proper appreciation of facts and evidences and thus, the same be upheld and the present appeals be dismissed. It was contended that Bunty (PW-3) and Sunny (PW-19) were the eye-witnesses to the case and the deposition of PW-3 is consistent with his statement to the police (Ex.PW-3/DA) and there is no variation in the roles of the accused persons. It was contended that there are only minor discrepancies in his statement which can be attributed to the passage of over one year between the date of the incident and the date of recording his testimony in the Court. PW-3 supported the prosecution‟s CRL.A. 1028/2017 & connected appeals N.C.No. 2023:DHC:2028-DB case in his examination and cross-examination, but turned hostile only when he was called for further examination after arrest of Vijay @ Nauty and Chander Prakash @ Pappu. It was further contended that PW-19 turned hostile and though he identified the accused persons correctly he stated that the accused persons had not murdered the deceased. It was contended that the fact that both the eye-witnesses turned hostile on 3rd January, 2014 shows that they were won over by the accused persons during trial however, it is a settled position of law that the testimony of a hostile witness must not be discarded in its entirety and those portions of the testimony which supports the prosecution case has to be read and considered and reliance was placed on the decision reported as (2012) 4 SCC 722 Govindaraju vs. State and (2012) 11 SCC 181 Bable vs. State of Chhattisgarh. It was further contended that Bunty (PW-3) had initially supported the prosecution‟s case which finds corroboration by other evidences and there is nothing on record to suggest any previous enmity between the accused persons and Bunty (PW-3). The non-identification of Vijay @ Nauty and Chander Prakash @ Pappu by PW-3 does not affect the prosecution‟s case when both these appellants were previously known to PW-3 and were categorically named by him in his statement to the police as well as during initial testimony in the Court. It was further contended that the DD No.46A was registered pursuant to a PCR call made by Raj Kumar Solanki (PW-5) whose office was located near the spot after noticing a huge crowd and the same was forwarded to HC Kamal Singh (PW-8) and as neither PW-5 nor PW-8 had witnessed the incident, mentioning of "four attackers" in the said DD No.46A is immaterial. It was further contended that Deepak (PW-9) supported the case of the prosecution and corroborated the initial portions of CRL.A. 1028/2017 & connected appeals N.C.No. 2023:DHC:2028-DB the testimony of PW-3. Deepak (PW-9) deposed to have given his motorcycle to PW-3 and PW-19 for taking the deceased to the hospital and also stated that his motorcycle was stained with blood when it was returned to him. Ct. Kulvir (PW-2) also stated that on the date of the incident, the police gypsy of ACP Dr.Ram Gopal Naik was stopped by PW-3 and PW-19 near Maharaja Surajmal Institute, Janakpuri and they requested him to take the deceased to the hospital, and thus, the testimony of PW-9 and PW-2 lends credence to the prosecution‟s case. One buttondar knife recovered at the instance of appellant Vinod @ Kake from the bushes inside the wall of the drain on the southern side of Vikas Puri Bridge stained with blood was proved by SI Shiv Dutt Jamini (PW-15) and IO (PW-30). It was further contended that the non-recovery of pistol used in the present offence is not fatal to the case of prosecution as the two gunshot injuries were attributed to Vijay @ Nauty and Chander Prakash @ Pappu, both of whom were initially declared as proclaimed offenders and were arrested on 22 nd May, 2013, that is, after almost two years of the date of incident and thus they had sufficient time to dispose of their weapons. Reliance was placed on the decision in (2021) 7 SCC 188 Rakesh vs. State of UP. Further, as per the post-mortem report, the time since death was opined as approximately 17-18 hours prior to the examination which was conducted on 28th November, 2010 at about 1.30 to 2.45 PM and accordingly, the approximate time of death would be 7.30 to 8.30 PM on 27th November, 2010 which matches with the alleged time of incident as deposed by Bunty (PW-3). As per the subsequent opinion (Ex.PW-26/B), the injuries on the body of the deceased were opined to be consistent to the knife produced, and even the blood found on the knife recovered from Vinod @ Kake matched with that of the deceased. It was CRL.A. 1028/2017 & connected appeals N.C.No. 2023:DHC:2028-DB contended that all the facts and circumstances taken together unerringly point towards the common intention of the appellant to attack the deceased with lethal weapons so as to cause death. Reliance was placed on the decision in (2014) 2 DLT (Cri.) 907 (DB) Mukesh Singh vs. State (NCT of Delhi).

22. Ct. Kulvir (PW-2) deposed that on the day of incident at about 9.15 PM, he was present along with ACP Dr. G. Ram Gopal Naik in his government gypsy and while passing through Maharaja Suraj Mal Institute at Janakpuri, two persons namely Sunny and Bunty on motorcycle bearing registration No.DL 7S 5439 requested the driver of the gypsy to stop and help them in taking the third person with them namely Sonu @ Bhola, who had received bullet injury to the hospital. After putting Sonu in the gypsy, Bunty sat along with them in the gypsy and Sunny drove on his motorcycle following them to the DDU Hospital. At the hospital, Sonu was declared brought dead. In his cross-examination, he stated that he did not inform to any police official of PS Uttam Nagar and that neither there was any blood in the gypsy nor on his clothes. The ACP was not present when the injured was declared dead.

30. As noted above, in his examination-in-chief conducted on 19th January, 2012, Bunty clearly stated that when he along with his friend Sonu CRL.A. 1028/2017 & connected appeals N.C.No. 2023:DHC:2028-DB @ Bhola and his brother Sunny were going to drop Bunty (him), and reached near the corner of Kali Basti, where garbage is collected (Khatta), two motorcycles stopped in front of them and within two minutes third motorcycle also stopped. Two persons namely Nauty and Pappu were sitting on one motorcycle and three persons namely Kake, Mahesh and Anil were sitting on the second motorcycle and three persons namely Vicky @ Gobind, Vicky @ Ganja and Rahul were sitting on the third motorcycle. Since by then Kake, Mahesh, Anil, Vicky @ Govind were arrested, he duly identified them. He clearly deposed about the exhortation made and that first of all Vinod @ Kake caught hold of Sonu and stabbed him from behind with a knife in his neck portion and forehead several times. Pappu took out a pistol from under his shirt and fired upon Sonu in his stomach and Nauty also took out a pistol from under his shirt and fired upon Sonu on his chest. Rest of the five accused had caught hold of Sonu during this incident. Sonu fell down on the road after receiving the injuries. Despite extensive cross- examination, version of Bunty could not be discredited in his cross- examination by all the accused persons except Chander Prakash @ Pappu and Vijay @ Nauty who had not been arrested till then. His version is further corroborated in material particulars by Sunny (PW-19) who was the real brother of the deceased who was examined on 3rd January, 2014 for the first time, however, he failed to name the accused. Deposition of Bunty is further corroborated by the version of Deepak (PW-9), whose motorcycle was taken by Bunty and Sunny, who put Sonu (deceased) on his motorcycle and took him to the hospital. On the way, they also found a police gypsy in which he was taken to the hospital. Their version is corroborated by Ct. Kulvir (PW-2), who deposed that on the day of incident at about 9.15 PM he CRL.A. 1028/2017 & connected appeals N.C.No. 2023:DHC:2028-DB was present in the government Gypsy when two persons namely Sunny and Bunty, who were on the motorcycle, requested the driver of Gypsy to stop and help them in taking the third person namely Sonu @ Bhola, who received bullet injuries, to the hospital. The MLC of Sonu (Ex.PW-4/A) whereby he was declared "brought dead" noted that he was brought to the hospital at 9.40 PM by ACP Dr.G. Ram Gopal Naik, Ct. Kulvir and Bunty, the neighbour, thereby showing the presence of Bunty at the spot to be able to take the deceased to the hospital.