JUDGMENT

Santosh Hegde, J.-Two appellants and 3 others were charged before the Additional Sessions Judge, Kurukshetra for offence punishable under section 304B read with section 34 IPC in connection with the suicide of one Baljit Kaur who was married to the first accused Surinder Kumar about 2-1/2 years prior to her death on 28.1.1992. It was the prosecution case that because of the harassment meted out to said Baljit Kaur, she consumed poison on the intervening night of 27th and 28th January, 1992 and died at about 4 a.m. in Ismailpur village within the jurisdiction of Police Station Thaska Miranji in Kurukshetra district. The information of death of Baljit Kaur was conveyed to her family on the said morning by one Dewa (not examined). On receipt of the said information, her family members including her brother Hari Chand PW-6 went to the village where Baljit Kaur s in-laws were residing and PW-6 having come to the conclusion that his sister had died under suspicious circumstances, lodged a complaint with Thaska Miranji P.S. on 28.1.1992 at about 12.40 p.m. The initial investigation in regard to the death of Baljit Kaur was conducted by PW-10 which was later completed by Sub-Inspector of Police who was examined as PW-9 who submitted the chargesheet for the offence stated hereinabove and after trial the Sessions Court came to the conclusion that the prosecution has established its case as against all the accused and it awarded 10 years RI to A-2 Basawa Singh who was the father-in-law of the deceased, while A-3 Shanti Devi, mother-in-law, was awarded 8 years RI and A-4 Surinder Kaur and A-5 Rajvinder Kaur were awarded 7 years RI each - all under section 304B IPC while A-1 Surinder Kumar, the husband of the deceased was awarded life imprisonment under section 304B IPC.

2. Aggrieved accused persons preferred an appeal before the High Court of Punjab & Haryana at Chandigarh which by the impugned judgment confirmed the conviction and sentence awarded to A-1 Surinder Kumar, husband and A-4 and A-5 Surinder Kaur and Rajwinder Kaur, the sisters-in-law of the deceased. It allowed the appeal of A-2 Basawa Singh, the father-in-law A-3 Shanti Devi, the mother-in-law of the deceased and acquitted them of the charges.

3. The present appeal before us is preferred by A-3 Rajwinder Kaur and A-4 Surinder Kaur who, at the time of the incident, were aged 18 and 16 years respectively and were unmarried. We are told at the Bar that their brother Surinder Kumar, the husband of the deceased has not preferred any appeal, hence, the conviction and sentence imposed on him by the two courts below has attained finality.

4. Mr. K.B. Sinha, learned senior counsel appearing for the appellants, contended that both the courts below have committed serious error in accepting the prosecution case as against the appellants herein though no specific allegation whatsoever has been made by the prosecution against them. He pointed out that the only allegation found against these appellants is in a general manner in the FIR filed by PW-6 and in the evidence of PWs. 6 and 7 in their examinations-in-chief which the learned counsel submitted under no stretch of imagination could be construed as sufficient evidence to base a conviction. He submitted that one of the ingredients necessary for establishing the allegation of harassment against an accused person under section 304B is that the concerned accused had harassed the victim soon before the death.

5. After reading the evidence of PWs. 6 and 7 in conjunction with the contents of the FIR, the learned counsel pointed out that so far as the allegation against these appellants are concerned, it is omnibus in nature and has been made without any specific instance only to involve the entire family of the appellants. He pointed out that the appellants who were then 18 and 16 years of age and unmarried, could not have gone to the extent of causing such harassment which would compel the deceased to commit suicide. At any rate the