IMPORTANT POINT
Ingredients of sections 498A and 304B IPC discussed and applied.

Headnote:(a) Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Section 498A and 306 – Demand of dowry established by reliable evidence – Guilt u/s 498A established – Prosecution failing to prove commission of suicide – Section 306 not attracted. (Para 31)
       (b) Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Section 304B – Deceased dying within 7 years of marriage, by burn injuries – Deceased subjected to cruelty soon before her death – Prosecution successfully establishing offence u/s 304B against the accused persons. (Para 32)
       Facts of the case:
       This case calls for interpretation of section 113A, Evidence Act.
       Deceased, wife of the respondent, died of burn injuries. She was in 7th month of her first pregnancy.
       The Trial Court held the accused guilty for the offences under Sections 498-A, 304-B, 306 r/w Section 34 IPC.
       The said finding was reversed by the High Court holding that unless the prosecution proves that death was suicidal and that the deceased was treated with cruelty and was harassed by direct evidence, the presumption under Section 113-A does not apply.
       Finding of the Court:
       Respondents are guilty u/ss 498A and 304B IPC.
       Result: Appeal partly allowed.

Judgement Key Points

Certainly. Based on the provided legal document, here are the key points:

The case involves a death by burn injuries within seven years of marriage, with allegations of cruelty and harassment by the husband and relatives related to dowry demands (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) .
Evidence shows that the deceased was subjected to cruelty and harassment, including demands for dowry such as a Hero Honda motorcycle, household articles, and other valuables, which contributed to her distress and ultimately her death (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) .
The prosecution successfully established that the death occurred within seven years of marriage under suspicious circumstances, caused by burns, and was linked to cruelty and harassment for dowry (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) (!) .
The legal presumption under the relevant evidence law section applies when it is shown that the woman was subjected to cruelty or harassment in connection with dowry demands shortly before her death. This presumption shifts the burden to the accused to disprove their involvement (!) (!) (!) (!) .
The evidence indicates that the deceased was not properly provided with food and was treated like an animal during her pregnancy, and that she expressed her suffering to her family members (!) (!) (!) .
The court found that the cruelty was intended to coerce the deceased to meet dowry demands, which contributed to her mental and physical suffering, leading to her death by burning (!) (!) (!) .
The court clarified that the expression "soon before her death" is to be interpreted based on the circumstances of each case, and in this case, the evidence supports that cruelty and harassment occurred close to the time of death (!) .
The presumption of dowry death under the law is applicable when the death occurs under suspicious circumstances within seven years of marriage, and there is evidence of cruelty or harassment related to dowry demands (!) (!) (!) .
The evidence also supports that the deceased’s death was caused by burns and was not under normal circumstances, fulfilling the criteria for dowry death (!) (!) (!) .
The court held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused were guilty of offences related to dowry harassment and dowry death, but not of abetment to suicide, as the evidence did not conclusively establish that the deceased committed suicide due to cruelty (!) (!) .
The court set aside the acquittal of the accused for the offence of abetment to suicide and upheld their conviction for dowry harassment and dowry death, ordering their custody to serve the remaining sentence (!) (!) .

Please let me know if you need further analysis or specific legal advice based on these points.

JUDGMENT

SUDHANSU JYOTI MUKHOPADHAYA, J.

These appeals are directed against the judgment dated 18th August, 2005 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Nagpur Bench, Nagpur in Criminal Appeal No.388 of 2005. By the impugned judgment the High Court held that unless the prosecution proves that death was suicidal and that the deceased was treated with cruelty and was harassed by direct evidence, the presumption under Section 113-A does not apply in the case and acquitted all the accused-respondents from the charges under Section 498-A, Section 304-B and Section 306 IPC all read with Section 34 IPC, thereby reversing the finding of the Trial Court.

2. Respondents – accused No.1, Shivpujan and accused No.3, Malti Devi are husband and wife. Accused No.2, Rajendra, accused No.5, Surendra and accused No.6, Virendra are their sons. Accused No.4, Anita is the daughter of accused Nos.1 and 3 and is married to one Satyam Mishra who is in Police service. Accused Nos.1 and 5 are also in Police service. Accused Nos. 1 to 3, 5 and 6 reside together in Plot No.96, Adarsha Colony, behind Police Line Takli at Nagpur. Accused No.4 resides in Police Line, Pathrigad Quarter, Sadar at Nagpur. Accused No.2-Rajendra is the youngest son of accused Nos.1 and 3. Deceased Ranjana was the wife of accused No.2-Rajendra.

3. Marriage of deceased took place with accused No.2-Rajendra on 19th April, 1998. She was the daughter of Ranchhod Prasad Pande (PW-11) and Chandrakanta (PW-8)-the complainant. The deceased was the younger sister of Ranjit (PW-9). Parents and brothers of the deceased reside at Gandhi Nagar, Surendergarh, Nagpur. The distance between the house of the accused and the parental house of the deceased is about 1 km.

4. The deceased sustained 98% burn injuries in the early morning of 8th April, 1999, in her matrimonial house i.e. the house of the accused Nos.1, 2, 3, 5 and 6. She was taken to Mayo Hospital, but before treatment could commence, she died at 9.30 a.m. on the same day itself and at that time the deceased was in the 7th month of her first pregnancy.

5. The prosecution case is that the husband and the mother-in-law i.e. accused Nos.2 and 3 used to beat the deceased whereas other accused together with accused Nos.2 and 3 used to mentally and physically ill-treat the deceased on account of dowry demand. Accused No.2-Rajendra wanted Hero Honda Motor Cycle from the parents of the deceased. He always used to press his demand. The deceased had informed her parents that she was being subjected to cruelty and that her in-laws behaved with her like animals. Many a times father of the deceased went to fetch the deceased but accused used to ask him that he should first bring money for Hero Honda Motorcycle and then only he can take the deceased along with him. Since 7th month of the pregnancy of the deceased was to begin, on 8th April, 1999 at 6 a.m. her father had been to her matrimonial house to fetch her. Accused insulted him on account of dowry demands and refused to send the deceased with him. At 9 a.m. accused No.5-Surendra i.e. elder brother-in-law (jeth) of the deceased came to the house of parents of the deceased and told them that their daughter had sustained burns and that she was admitted in Mayo Hospital. The parents of the deceased immediately rushed to Mayo Hospital. It was found that their daughter was already dead.

6. A.D. No.28/99 under Section 174 Cr.P.C. was registered at 10.50 a.m. on 8th April, 1999 on the basis of report of Police Head Constable Diwakar from Mayo Hospital Police Booth. The PSI-S.R. Parvekar thereafter visited the spot of occurrence, prepared spot panchanama (Ext.40) and then proceeded to Mayo Hospital and prepared inquest panchanama (Ext.43) and sent the dead body for its postmortem. Postmortem was conducted by Dr. Ashish Wankhede (PW-10) and report is Ext.62. Thereafter, the report (Ext.54) was lodged by PW.8, mother of the deceased with the Police Head Constable Girish Pande (PW-14) upon which FIR (Ext

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Judicial Analysis

SupremeToday

2014 Supreme(SC) 517

IMPORTANT POINT Ingredients of sections 498A and 304B IPC discussed and applied.

Judicial Analysis

IMPORTANT POINT
Ingredients of sections 498A and 304B IPC discussed and applied.