--Identity of accused--Bail, grant of--Assailants who emerged at the spot all of a sudden had concealed their faces with masks-

 PLJ 2021 SC (Cr.C.) 188

Criminal Procedure Code, 1898 (V of 1898)--

----S. 497--Pakistan Penal Code, (XLV of 1860), Ss. 302 & 324--Identity of accused--Bail, grant of--Assailants who emerged at the spot all of a sudden had concealed their faces with masks--I.O. failure to recover the weapon or the motorbike used during the occurrence brings fate of prosecution case to be essentially decided on the basis of supplementary statement--Bail allowed.                                                   [P. 189] A

Mr. Asad Ullah Khan Chamkani, ASC for Petitioners.

Mr. Zahid Yousaf Qureshi, Additional Advocate General, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with M. Aslam, SI for Respondents.

Date of hearing: 9.12.2020.

 PLJ 2021 SC (Cr.C.) 188
[Appellate Jurisdiction]
Present: Maqbool Baqar and Qazi Muhammad Amin Ahmed, JJ.
LAL MARJAN and another--Petitioners
versus
ISLAM GUL and others--Respondents
Crl. P. No. 1210 of 2020, decided on 9.12.2020.
(Against the order dated 25.09.2020 passed by the Peshawar High Court in Cr. Misc. (B.A.) No. 2881-P of 2020)

Order

Qazi Muhammad Amin Ahmed, J.--Two masked pillion riders surprised the complainant and the witnesses with sudden indiscriminate firing at 5:45 p.m. on 28.7.2020 within the remits of Police Station Barra District Khyber; from amongst the injured, Safeer subsequently succumbed to the injuries. As the investigation progressed, the complainant came up with a supplementary statement purportedly recorded on 6.8.2020 wherein the petitioners were arrayed as the culprits against the backdrop of deceased's runaway marriage with a lady related with them, way back in the year 2012.

2. Heard. Record perused.

3. Be that as it may, it is prosecution's own case that the assailants who emerged at the spot all of a sudden had concealed their faces with masks; 19 casings of 7.66 caliber secured from the spot suggest use of an automatic weapon, indicating suddenness of the episode in retrospect. Investigating Officer's failure to recover the weapon or the motorbike used during the occurrence brings fate of prosecution case to be essentially decided on the basis of supplementary statement, evidentiary value whereof, is to be best assessed after recording of evidence. A case for petitioners' release on bail is made out within the contemplation of subsection (2) of Section 497 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898; they shall be released upon furnishing bonds in the sum of Rs.500,000/- with one surety each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the learned trial Court. Petition is converted into appeal and allowed.

(K.Q.B.)          Bail granted