1976 INSC 0282
                                                Surendra and Others

                                                           Vs

                                               State of Uttar Pradesh

                                        Criminal Appeal No. 247 of 1976

                                     (P.N. Bhagwati, Syed M. Fazal Ali JJ)

                                                      19.08.1976

                                                     JUDGMENT

BHAGWATI, J. -

This appeal by special leave is limited only to the question of sentences. The appellants have been
convicted of the offence under Section 325 read with Section 149 of the Indian Penal Code and
sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for a period of two years and to pay a fine of Rs. 300. We
do not see any reason to interfere with this sentence which has been imposed by the sessions court
and confirmed by the High Court. The imposition of sentence is always a matter of discretion and
unless this Court finds that the discretion has been exercised arbitrarily or capriciously or on
unsound principles or that the sessions court or the High Court has not taken into account any
relevant factors in imposing the sentence, this Court would not be justified in reducing the sentence,
merely because it feels that a lesser sentence might well have been imposed. Here, in the present
case, the appellants and others caused as many as 17 injuries each to Jagdish Prasad and Moti Ram
and 8 injuries to Sukhbir Singh and out of them one injury each to Jagdish Prasad and Sukhbir
Singh was grievous hurt. It is true that they also in their turn received some injuries but these were
mostly of a superficial nature. We do not think that in the circumstances we would be justified in
interfering with the sentences imposed by the sessions court and confirmed by the High Court. We
accordingly dismiss the appeal.

</html