IMPORTANT POINT
Dying declaration should be scrutinised very carefully and if the court is satisfied after such scrutiny that the dying declaration was true and free from any effort to prompt the deceased to make such a statement and is coherent and consistent, there is no legal impediment in founding the conviction on it even in a bride burning case whether or not it has been recorded by the police officer during investigation.

JUDGMENT

Thomas, J.-This is a case of uxoricide. Kamla, the teenaged wife of the appellant was burnt to death. Her suckling baby also sustained burns but did not die then. Appellant was charged for murder of Kamla. Though Sessions Court acquitted the appellant the High Court of Madhya Pradesh in an appeal filed by the State, reversed the acquittal and convicted him, under Section 302 IPC and sentenced him to imprisonment for life. Hence this appeal by the convicted appellant.

2. Facts, set up by the prosecution, in brief, are these:

Kamla and her husband Betal Singh (appellant) and their little child were living together with appellant s mother. Kamla was entertaining suspicion that her husband was carrying on illicit sexual connection with his elder sister-in-law, and Kamla used to openly accuse him of it. This conduct of Kamla invited trouble to her from appellant as well as her mother-in-law and she was subjected to torture by them on account of it. The murder took place on 7.6.1979. A few days prior to it her mother-in-law left the house and went to a nearby village on some errand. Around 10 A.M. on the date of occurrence, appellant doused the deceased with kerosene and set her ablaze by lighting a match-stick. Her little child also caught fire and both sustained severe burn injuries. Hearing her tantrums people around, including some of the prosecution witnesses, rushed into the room and they witnessed a human inferno remaining helpless. They made some efforts to extinguish the fire. But the burn injuries sustained by Kamla were so devastating that she could not survive beyond evening.

3. Before her death Kamla was taken to a nearby hospital. FIR was regist ered on the strength of a statement given by a. Neighbour (PW 1). A police officer (PW 14 - ASI), went to the hospital and recorded a statement from Kamla (Ext. P-l) which later turned out to be the most important item of evidence in this case as the same became admissible under Section 32 of the Evidence Act.

4. The version recorded in Ext. P-l is the following :

Her husband had illicit connection with his sister-in-law and he persisted in it despite her repeated protestations. She was subjected to physical assaults by her husband s father and mother and occasionally she was put to starvation. Once she saw her husband in liaison with the sister-in-law and when she protested she was beaten up by her husband as well as her mother-in-law. Food was denied to her for four days. About eight days before the occurrence, her mother-in-law had gone away but she suggested to her son to eliminate Kamla by burning her. On the occurrence day, while she was sleeping on a cotton carpet (Deri) in her room the appellant sprinkled kerosene on her and lighted a match-stick. He then bolted the room from outside. She was rescued by the neighbours.

5. If the version in Ext. P-1 can be acted on it certainly would prove the guilt of the appellant. But the Sessions Judge did not believe it and hence the acquittal by him. The High Court has chosen to place reliance on the said statement. After reminding themselves of the legal principles to be observed while interfering with an order of acquittal, learned Judges of the High Court reached the conclusion that Kamla was murdered by the appellant and accordingly convicted him and sentenced him as aforesaid.

6. Appellant in his defence has examined two doctors (DW-1 and DW-3) who were attached to the hospital where Kamla was admitted with burn injuries. Those witnesses proved a statement recorded in Ext. D-l, which is said to be part of the case sheet included in the "bed head ticket". DW-1 Dr. Kamal Misra said that he scribbled down the version given by the deceased Kamla soon after she was brought to the hospital. What is stated in Ext. D-l is that when Kamla was cooking food, a stove abruptly burst and her clothes caught fire and her husband rushed to her rescue. Kamla also told the Doctor that she had no enemies, although she had some disputes with h