SARDAR MUHAMMAD, J.-This appeal is directed against the judgment, dated 15th May, 1979 of the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Gujranwala by which Ghulam Rasul appellant was convicted under section 302, P. P. C. And sentenced to death. He has filed Criminal Appeal No. 670 of 1979.
Murder Reference No. 215 of 1979 for confirmation of death sentence is also before us. Both the appeal and the reference shall be disposed of by this judgment.
2. Briefly the prosecution case is that on 5th November, 1975 at about midnight Nabi Ahmad complainant (P. W. 8) was going to his village with Muhammad Ali (P W. 9) after getting down from the bus at G. T. Road. When they proceeded to village Kotli Sahian, they heard cries of (BACHAO BACHAO). They rushed towards that side and saw the appellant inflicting danda blows to Fateh Ali deceased. The complainant and his companion asked the appellant to let off the deceased but he continued inflicting blows. When the deceased fell down, the appellant pressed the neck of the deceased with the chadar. On the lalkara raised by the P. Ws. The appellant started running towards the village. In the meantime Muhammad Malik P. W. (given up) also arrived and joined the complainant and Muhammad Ali in the pursuit of the appellant. They overtook the appellant and caught him along with the danda which he was holding. The motive for the occurrence is stated to be the suspicion of the appellant that the deceased had illicit connections with Mst. Sardaran, his wife.
3. Nabi Ahmad (P. W. 8) and Muhammad Ali (P. W. 9) then proceeded towards the police station along with the appellant and the danda leaving Muhammad Malik and Zafarullah P. Ws. (given up) to watch out the dead body. When they reached near Adda Larian Ghakkhar, they met Ataullah, A.
S. I. (P. W. 11). Nabi Ahmad made statement (Exh. P. D.) at 1-30 a. m. Before him and signed the same after it was read over to him. The appellant was produced before the A. S. (. Who arrested him.
Blood-stained danda (P. 5) was also taken into possession vide memo. Exh. P. E. The same was sealed into a parcel. The A. S. I also took into possession chadar (P. 6), Khes (P. 7) and shirt (P. 8), all blood-stained, of the appellant, vide memo. Exh. P. F. Both the memos were signed by Nabi Ahmad and Muhammad Ali P. Ws. The A. S. I. Despatched the statement (Exh. P D) of the complainant through Javid Iqbal, F. C. To the Police Station for formal registration of the case. F. I. R. (Exh. P D/1) was drafted at 2 a. m. In the midnight by Nazir Husain, A. S. I. (P. W. 7). The A. S. I. Then proceeded to the spot with the P. Ws. Nabi Ahmad and Muhammad Ali and appellant Ghulam Rasul. He prepared the injury statement of the deceased (Exh. P H) and inquest report (Exh. P I) and despatched the dead body for post-mortem examination in the custody of Abbas Ali, F. C. (P W 2). He inspected the spot and took into possession blood-stained earth vide memo Exh. P. C. And sealed the same into a parcel. Site plan (Exh. P A) and its duplicate (Exh. P A/1) were got prepared by the A. S. I. From Muhammad Ibrahim, Draftsman (P. W. 3) on the instructions of the police and pointing out of the P.
Ws.
4. The post-mortem examination was conducted by Dr. Waseem Akhtar (P. W. 10) on 5th November, 1975 at 11 a. m. And he found the following 19 injuries on the body of the deceased ;-
(1) A contused wound, 1" x 1/4" x scalp deep on frontal region of bead, 1/2" to the right of mid-line.
(2) A contused wound, 1 ----- x ----- x bone deep on left temproparietal region of head.
(3) A contused wound 11/3--- x 1/2" bone deep on left temproparietal region of head, 1" above injury No. 2.
(4) A contused wound, 1" x 1/4" X scalp deep on right occipital region of head.
(5) A contused wound, 3/4'' x 1/4" x bone deep on right occoipital region of head.
(6) to (15) ---------------------------..
(16) Multiple linear scratches on the whole front, upper and middle part of right thigh.
(17) An abrasion 1/2" x 1/2" on front of right knee.
(18) A contused wound, 1--- x 1/4" x muscle deep on Vential surface of left side of lower jaw.
(19) Multiple contused abrasions on the whole front and left side of the neck.
The injuries were found to have been caused on almost all parts of the body including the head.
According to the opinion of the doctor death primarily was the cause of shock and haemorrhage as a result of frac--ture of skull and injury to brain due to injuries described on the head which were collectively sufficient to cause death. Secondarily, asphyxia of mild nature had also contributed to the shortening of period between injuries and death. Probable time between injuries and death was within a few minutes and between death and post-mortem within 12 hours.
5. The accused-appellant was charged under section 302, P. P. C. He pleaded not guilty to the charge and claimed to be tried. His case is that he has not committed the murder, that the P. Ws.
Have not seen the occurrence and that he has been falsely involved in this case.
6. The prosecution has based its case on the following grounds :-
(1) Motive, (2) Ocular evidence, (3) Recoveries and (4) Medical evidence.
7. Motive : The motive in this case is stated to be suspicion of the appellant that the deceased was having illict relations with his wife Mst. Sardar Bibi. Nabi Ahmad (P. W. 8) and Muhammad Ali (P. W.
9) both have corroborated each other. Since the appellant has also admitted in his statement under section 342, Cr. P. C. That the deceased had illicit relations with his wife, there is no dispute about the motive and so it stands admittedly proved.
8. Ocular evidence : The ocular evidence in this case is provided by Nabi Ahmad (P. W. 8), who lodged Exh. P D/1 and Muhammad Ali (P. W. 9). The learned counsel for the appellant has argued that these witnesses are not reliable and that they do not inspire confidence. According to him, firstly, it is impossible that they could have come to the spot at the alleged time of occurrence as according to him the explanation of the eye-witnesses that they were coming from the sugar mill after leaving tractor trolly loaded with sugar-cane is not acceptable because of some discrepancies qua cutting and taking, the sugar-cane to the mill. It has also been argued that even if they were returning from the mill then the place where they got down from the bus was not the place where they should have got down because to go to their village they should have at least travelled another 100 yards ahead in the bus. According to him the distance of the village from the point where they claim to have got down is 3J acres, the point where accord--ing to him they should have got down from the bus is two acres. We do not find any force in these two objections.
Firstly, for the reason that there is no important discrepancy in regard to the narration about going to the sugar mill and coming back. Secondly, difference of one-and-a-half acres in the distance would not matter much. It is common knowledge that the bus driver cannot be pin-pointed by yards. It is usual that if bus drivers are asked by passenger to stop the bus he will either stop a few yards closer or few yards ahead which is quite natural particularly when there is no established bus stop and the stoppage is requested on the high way. Learned counsel for the appellant has not been able to point out any enmity of the P. Ws. With the appellant. No relationship of the P. Ws. With the deceased has been established. Some suggestions in this regard have been totally denied by the P. Ws. The P. Ws. Are independent and thus worth reliance.
9. The learned counsel for the appellant has laid much stress on the fact that neither the shoes of the deceased nor his turban was taken into possession. He would have us believe that it is because of 'he fact that the deceased was murdered somewhere else and was thrown at the spot and the occurrence had gone unwitnessed. Learned counsel has failed to take note of the fact that the F. I.
R. And in the narration of the occurrence by Nabi Ahmad (P. W. 8) and Muhammad Ali (P. W. 9) in the Court, the witnesses have not claimed that the occurrence started in their presence. In fact they were attracted by the cries of the deceased when he was already under attack. Therefore the possi--bility cannot be ruled out that the deceased was chased and attacked by the appellant and having reached the spot where the P. Ws. Were attracted, he received further injuries. It is just possible that the deceased might have put off his shoes while running for escape. Non availability of turban is of no importance because it is not a necessary dress these days. The deceased was having a spare chadar with him which was also taken into possession. The fact that blood-stained earth was found at the alleged place of occurrence also concludes the matter that the occurrence had taken place at the mentioned spot. The conclusion arrived at by the learned counsel for the appellant that the occurrence had gone unwitnessed is falsified by the fact that the appellant was caught at the spot along with the danda which was found to be blood-stained. The fact of his having been caught at the spot is mentioned in Exh. P. D. And Exh. P. D./1. It is also mentioned in the proceedings of inquest report. By no stretch of imagination it can be said that the P. Ws. And the police joined in such a manner that they pro--cured the appellant on the following day, prepared all these documents thereafter particularly in view of the fact that no malice has been alleged against the P. Ws. It may also be mentioned that since the post-morfem examination was conducted within 12 hours and the inquest report bears the signature of the doctor, which again indicates that the arrest of the appellant had been effected before that and at the spot. With respect to the learned counsel for the appellant, we do not find any force in any of these arguments and repel the same.
10. Recoveries: So far as the recoveries are concerned, they were effected at the spot at the time when the appellant was caught. The police was nowhere in picture at that time. Therefore, there can be no question of planting of blood-stained danda (P. 5), the corrobora--tive piece of evidence. The recoveries are also proved as the same have been witnessed by the eye-witnesses about whom we have/ already held that they had seen the occurrence and are reliable witnesses.
11. Medical evidence : The medical evidence of course corro--borates the eye-witness account.
There is no contradiction. The number of injuries also indicates that the deceased was injured by a person who bad lot of venom against the deceased. When the motive is family honour the amount of venom is also immense and it is for this reason that the deceased was given a large number of injuries.
12. In view of the above discussion, we hold that the appellant had caused the death of Fateh Ali.
We, therefore, maintain his conviction under section 302, P. P. C. For causing the death of Fateh Ali.
13. As for the sentence, we note that the crime was committee out of sense of honour which is jealously nursed among the rural classes. The appellant knew that the deceased was having illicit rela--tions with his wife. This is a case of avenging the insult to honour. In such cases many a times death sentence is not awarded and there are some reported cases where death sentence was not confirmed. PLD 1965 SC 363 may be quoted as one. We, therefore, substitute; the sentence of death with imprisonment for life. The sentence of fine of Rs. 5,000 is maintained. However, imprisonment in default of payment of fine is reduced from five years' R. I. To two years' R. I. The death sentence is not confirmed. Murder Reference is, therefore, rejected. We also direct that while computing the sentence the appellant shall be given the benefit of the period he spent under detention before his conviction.
Death sentence not confirmed.