JUDGMENT

P. Venkatarama Reddy, J.-This is an appeal filed by the State of Maharashtra against the verdict of acquittal recorded by the Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court. The respondent was convicted under Section 302 IPC and sentenced to life imprisonment by the Additional District and Sessions Judge, Aurangabad on the charge of committing the murder of Veena with whom the accused had a marriage engagement. The marriage was scheduled to take place on 2nd December, 1991. The tragic incident occurred in the night of 28th September, 1991 at about 7.30 p.m. The victim Veena died in the hospital on the next day i.e. 29th September at about 8 p.m. on account of the burn injuries she received on the previous day. The accused also had some burn injuries on his hands in the process of extinguishing the flames on the deceased. The conviction was based on certain dying declarations and the circumstantial evidence brought out by the examination of PW4 who was a vendor having a tea-stall near the spot of burning. The High Court, on an elaborate consideration, felt it unsafe to rely on the dying declarations or to accept the evidence of PW4 and therefore set aside the conviction. We are i