' In this appeal Mashal Khan, accused-appellant has called in question the vires of the order, dated 9-6-1999 of Mr. Abdul Sattar Khan, Sessions Judge, Lakki Marwat, whereby convicting the accused- appellant under section 302, P.P.C. Sentenced him to death and a fine of Rs,50,000 in terms of section 544-A, Cr.P.C. To be paid to the legal heirs of the deceased as compensation or in default to suffer six months' S.I. The learned Sessions Judge, Lakki Marwat has also submitted Murder Reference (No,4 of 1999) for confirmation of the sentence of death under section 374, Cr.P.C. Mira Jan, complainant has also filed a Criminal Revision Petition (No,12 of 1999) praying for enhancement of the compensation awarded to the legal heirs of the deceased. Since, the Criminal Appeal, Murder Reference and the Criminal Revision Petition are the outcome of the same order these are all disposed of by this common judgment.
2. Facts, relevant for the disposal of this appeal, in brief, are that on 14-5-1996 when Azam Khan, deceased in the company of his brother Mira Jan (P.W.3), reached Lari Adda Lakki, at about 8-30 a.m., the accused, who was present there armed with D,B. Shotgun suddenly fired a shot at the deceased with which he was hit and fell to the ground where after the accused ran away from the spot and was followed by the police officials present at the Adda. Motive for the murder was previous blood-feud between the parties. Leaving the dead body of the deceased on the spot, Mira Jan, complainant went to the Police Station Lakki Marwat and lodged First Information Report (Exh.PA) about the occurrence which was recorded at 8-45 a.m. In the police station by Muhammad Aslam Khan, S.H.O. After recording the report the Investigating Officer went to the spot and prepared injury sheet Exh. P.W.7/1 and inquest reprot Exh. P.W.7/2 of the deceased and des- patched the dead body to the mortuary for autopsy. The Investigating Officer prepared the site plan Exh.P.B. He took into possession blood-stained earth from the spot vide memo. Exh.P.R. Shirt Exh. P-1 and Chaddar Exh.P.2 stained with blood and having cut marks belonging to the deceased, sent by the Doctor were also taken into possession besides a sealed bottle containing three pellets Exh.P.3, sealed them into a parcel through memo. Exh.PR/1. He also seized a D.B. Shotgun (No, AR- 865) with an empty shell in its right chamber and a loaded cartridge in its left chamber, Exh.P.4, along with bandolier containing 23 live cartridges of .12 bore Exh.P-5 and a licence copy Exh. P-6 in the name of accused Mashal Khan vide memo. Exh. PR/2. These articles were produced before the Investigating Officer by H.C. Gul Nawaz. The accused was arrested near Eid Gah by H.C. Gul Nawaz (P.W.4), who in the company of Mira Baz and Khan Zada, constables, had chased him immediately after hearing the report of fire shot at Lari Adda, Lakki Marwat where he along with the two constables was on 'Gasht'. Shot gun along with the empty shell and live cartridge was sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory. The report of the Fire Arms Expert is Exh. PK/1. After completing the investigation complete challan was put in the Court and on completion of trial the learned Sessions Judge, Lakki Marwat found the accused guilty of the murder of Muhammad Azam (deceased) and accordingly convicted him and sentenced him as detailed earlier.
3. This is a case in which the only accused is charged by a solitary eye-witness for committing the murder of the deceased. The eye-witness happens to be the real brother of the deceased. There is previous blood-feud between the parties and in such situation Mira Jan the eye-witness is surely an interested witness. In Mehtab Khan-Appellant v. The State-Respondent (PLD 1979 SC (AJ&K) 23) it was held that:-- "The mere fact that the witnesses are related inter se or related to the deceased is not sufficient to discredit outright their testimony if otherwise such witnesses are found to be witnesses of truth. But where the witnesses are found to have been interested and inimical in the sense that they have a motive to implicate falsely the innocent persons from other party the Court should be on guard and cautiously look for some supporting circumstances with a view to eliminating the chances of false implication especially in cases where there is a background of blood feuds between the parties or a chain reaction of retaliatory murders."
' As pointed out earlier, only accused is charged for firing at and committing the murder of the deceased. The occurrence took place at 8-30 a.m. The report was lodged in the Police Station, distant 2/3 furlongs, at 8-45 a.m. By Mira Jan, complainant. The time of occurrence finds corroboration in the statement of Gul Nawaz H.C. (P.W.4) that at 8-30 a.m. While he was present at Lari Adda alongwith police constables he heard report of fire shot. The F.I.R. Was thus lodged with promptitude and it cannot be termed to be the result of some deliberations or consultations or the procurement of a witness to the occurrence. Doctor Muhammad Iqbal Khan (P.W. 2) who had conducted autopsy on the dead body of deceased had found an entrance wound at the back of chest on left side 3-1/2" lateral to the vertebral column, at the level of 9th rib, size 1" x 1", skin muscle and cavity deep with six exit wounds of fire-arm at front of chest on right thigh 3" lateral to the sternum and 3" below the right nipple each one 1/4" x 1/4", scattered in an area of 3" x 3". According to the doctor the entrance and exit wounds were at the same level. The medical evidence also corroborates the prosecution case regarding firing of one shot by the accused at the deceased with a shotgun, keeping in view the only entrance wound 1" x 1" with six exit wounds of 1/4" x 1/4" in size. The medical evidence further lends support to the time of occurrence as the doctor conducted postmortem examination at 10-30 a.m. And gave the duration between death and post-mortem as 2 to 3 hours.
4. Mashal Khan, accused is directly charged in the F.I.R. For firing at the deceased and committing his murder. The F.I.R. Was lodged within the span of 15 minutes, therefore, there is no question of consultation regarding false implication of the accused. Immediately after the occurrence while the accused decamped from the spot he was chased by a police party headed by Gul Nawaz, H.C.
And was ultimately arrested at some distance and from his possession his licensed shotgun alongwith crime empty in one of its chamber and a live cartridge in another chamber with bandolier containing Live cartridges was recovered from his possession. According to Gul Nawaz, H.C. The barrel was giving smell of fresh discharge. This Gul Nawaz, H.C. Has no animosity with Mashal Khan, accused to falsely depose against him. The shotgun alongwith the crime empty and live cartridges was sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory and the report of the Fire Arms Expert fully supports the prosecution case that the deceased was done to death by firing a shot at him with the licensed shotgun of the only accused. In Muhammad Sharif v. The State (PLD 1978 SC (AJ&K) 146), it was held that:-- "Whether a witness is to be believed depends on the circumstances and facts of each case.
Assessm ent of interested and partisan evidence, is of course, a difficult matter which engaged the attention of superior Courts time and again. The first thing which is of paramount importance is to see whether the witness is a natural witness and if Courts come to the conclusion that the witness is a natural witness then in the case of testimony of such a witness law does not make incumbent upon the Courts to ask for corroboration before relying on the testimony of such a witness.
' Evidence of such a witness, however, is required to be scrutinized with great care and caution in order to eliminate any possibility of doubt and Courts must also determine as to whether or not he is a witness on whose words implicit reliance can be placed without independent corroboration.
Nevertheless, no inflexible rule can be formulated in this behalf. In each case, the evidence of witness has to be evaluated on merits and if it rings true in the context and the circumstances emerging from the case, it must be relied upon as the basis for conviction without any corroboration. In a case of this nature, where the statement of an interested but natural witness can be believed with implicate faith without difficulty, corroboration is not to be insisted upon as a rule of law or as a rule of prudence and evidence will not be rejected merely because the witnesses are related with the deceased and inimical towards the accused. The safe administration of criminal justice demands that Court should draw its own inference flowing from evidence and circumstances and not be deterred by reason of incompleteness of tale given by each party."
Mira Jan, P.W., being a real brother of the deceased having blood feud with the accused though a interested witness in this sense, he has not only given a confidence-inspiring evidence regarding murder of his brother at the hands of the accused without exaggerating the true facts or the number of the accused which otherwise is very common in this part of the country and his assertions finding full corroboration, though not necessarily required in view of the principles laid down by the Supreme Court and the trial Judge in the circumstances correctly placed reliance on his statement. Mira Jan, P W., charged Mashal Khan, accused in the F.I.R. While the dead body of his brother was still lying on the spot and when the accused had not as yet been arrested by the chasing police party nor is there any witness that before proceeding to chase the culprits Gul Nawaz, H.C. Had any sort of conversation with him.
4. Learned counsel for the appellant contended that the medical evidence did not support the prosecution case because keeping in view the dimension of the inlet wound with the allegation of firing with a .12 bore cartridge the assailant had fired at the deceased from a very close range.
Elaborating he submitted that at 3 feet the hole is nearly 1-1/4 inches in diameter, and the difference between the two extremes of boring; true cyclinder and full choke, begins to be evident.
At 6 feet the hole from a true cyclinder would be nearly twice as big in diameter as that from a full choke. He placed reliance on the observations at page 73 of the booklet "the Identification of Fire Arms and Forensic Ballistics by Major Sir Gerald Burred. The learned counsel submitted that while the prosecution has nowhere deposed that the deceased had been shot from a close range of less than 2 feet, the medical evidence suggests that the deceased had been shot from a very close range. Perusal of the site plan would suggest that the deceased was shot while present at point No,1 by the accused from point No,3. At point No,2 Mira Jan (P.W.) witnessed the occurrence the distance between the points 1 and 3 is 7 paces, between 1 and 2 three single paces and between 2 and 3 six single paces. The accused fired at the deceased from point No,3 while the latter was at point No,1. The dimension of the entrance and the exit wounds on the person of the deceased do suggest that the deceased was fired at from a close range but even the prosecution case is not contrary to the said version. Although the Doctor did not find any blackening marks around the wounds or the clothes but the said Doctor clearly stated not to rule out the possibility that had he removed the blood from around the cut of inlet wound on the shirt he might have found the blackening marks on the shirt of the deceased. The various places of the deceased and the accused shown in the site plan coupled with the statement of the doctor would further lend support to the evidence of Mira Jan (P.W) at whose instance the Investigating Officer had prepared the site plan and wherein the various places of presence of the deceased, the accused and the witness have been shown close to each other.
5. From whatever angle we may look at the prosecution case we are firm in our view that the prosecution has established its case of the charge of murder of the deceased at the hands of Mashal Khan, accused without any doubt and the learned trial Judge has rightly convicted him under section 302, P.P.C. We do not notice any mitigating or extenuating circumstances as to entitle the accused to a lesser penalty.
' Consequently the appeal of Mashal Khan. Accused-appellant is dismissed and the murder reference is answered affirmative, the sentence of death is confirmed, the sentence of fine of Rs,50,000 to be paid to the legal heirs of the deceased in terms of section 544-A, Cr.P.C. Is also maintained. As regards the revision petition is concerned we find the sentence awarded to the accused-appellant adequate and need no interference. The criminal revision petition is dismissed.