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IN THE HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR
RAMESH SINHA, CJ, BIBHU DATTA GURU, J.
Deepak Kumar Rathore S/o Shri Durgaprasad Rathore – Appellant
Versus
State of Chhattisgarh – Respondent
CRA No. 1530 of 2022
Decided On : 27-10-2025
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. nature of the appeal and background. (Para 1 , 2) |
| 2. details of the case and allegations against appellants. (Para 3 , 4) |
| 3. appellants argue lack of direct evidence and general allegations. (Para 6) |
| 4. state counters with evidence supporting conviction. (Para 7) |
| 5. court's consideration of evidence. (Para 8) |
| 6. postmortem findings reveal homicidal death. (Para 10 , 24) |
| 7. witness testimonies support allegations of dowry harassment. (Para 11 , 12 , 13) |
| 8. legal requirements and definitions concerning dowry death. (Para 17 , 20 , 21) |
| 9. elements of connection between cruelty and cause of death. (Para 22 , 23 , 27) |
| 10. issues explored related to simultaneous convictions under ipc. (Para 28 , 36) |
| 11. conclusion on appeal and directions regarding sentencing. (Para 38 , 39 , 40) |
JUDGMENT :
RAMESH SINHA, J.
1. This appeal filed by the appellants, who are husband, mother-in-law and nana sasur of Pranjal Rathore (since deceased), is directed against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 22/09/2022 passed by the learned Fifth Additional Sessions Judge, Biilaspur, District: Bilaspur, C.G. in S.T. No.48/2021 whereby the appellants have been sentence and convicted as under:-
| Conviction | Sentence |
| Under Section 302/34 of the IPC | R.I. for life and fine amount of Rs.1000/- in default of payment of fine amount, further R.I. for 100 days |
| Under Section 304-B/34 of the IPC | R.I. for 07 years and fine amount of Rs.100/-, in default of payment of fine amount, further R.I. for 10 days |
The sentences were directed to run concurrently
2. As per the order of this Court dated 10/11/2023, the Appellant No.3 - Manharan Lal Rathore has died during the pendency of this appeal and accordingly, the present appeal in his respect was abated. Thus, we are dealing with the appeal only in respect of A1 (husband) and A2 (mother-in-law).
3. Facts of the case, in brief, is that on 26.10.2020, PW6-Dilip Rathore, brother of A-1 and son of A-2 lodged merg intimation that on 26.10.2020, at around 8:30 a.m., A-1 brought Pranjal Rathore (deceased) from her parental home Saragaon to her matrimonial home and had meal together. Thereafter, A-1 had gone to his duty. Subsequently, the deceased had committed suicide by hanging herself in her room. Based on above facts, merg was registered vide Ex.P-7. During the investigation, it was revealed that after the marriage, the appellants started harassing and treating the deceased with cruelty, saying that she had brought nothing in dowry and demanding dowry from her. On 22.10.2020, when the deceased went to her parental home during the Navratri festival, the accused persons demanded a sum of Rs. 3,00,000/- in the form of dowry and forbade her from returning to her matrimonial home unless she brought the said amount. On 23.10.2020, A-2 abused the mother of deceased over the phone and threatened that if the deceased was not sent back with Rs. 3,00,000/- she would be killed. As a result of continuous physical and mental harassment and torture by the accused persons for dowry, Pranjal Rathore committed suicide by hanging herself. FIR was registered vide Ex.P-18. Crime details form was prepared vide Ex.P-8. The dead-body of deceased was sent for postmortem examination and in the postmortem examination report (Ex.P/12), Dr. Mahendra Madhukar (PW-11/A) opined that the cause of death was asphyxia due to strangulation and the nature of death was homicidal. After completing the investigation, the appellants were arrested and final report was prepared alleging commission of offence under Section 304B/34 IPC.
4. In order to bring home the offence, the prosecution examined as many as 16 witnesses and exhibited 25 documents. The statement of the appellants under Section 313 of Cr.P.C. were also recorded in which they denied the material appearing against them and stated that they are innocent and they have been falsely implicated in the case.
5. After appreciation of evidence available on record, the learned trial Court has convicted the
The court affirmed that a conviction for dowry death under Section 304-B IPC is established when a woman dies shortly after marriage due to cruelty for dowry demands, while simultaneous conviction un....
Point of Law : For offence Under Section 304-B Indian Penal Code, punishment is imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than seven years but which may extend to imprisonment for life.
The prosecution must prove cruelty or harassment for dowry demand soon before death to sustain a conviction under Sections 304-B and 498-A IPC; insufficient evidence leads to acquittal.
To sustain a conviction under Section 304B IPC, the prosecution must establish a proximate link between dowry-related cruelty and the victim's death within seven years of marriage, demonstrating that....
The court affirmed the conviction under Section 304-B IPC, establishing that the deceased was subjected to cruelty for dowry demands, leading to her suicide, thus satisfying the legal requirements fo....
To convict under Section 304-B IPC, it must be proven that the victim faced cruelty for dowry-related demands occurring soon before death, which was not established in this case.
Point of law : Dowry death - Conviction set aside - Articles, said to be demanded, are not such for which present appellants can be direct beneficiaries. Moreover, evidence on the above point is not ....
The court clarified that a conviction under Section 304B for dowry death does not substitute for a murder charge under Section 302, emphasizing the need for distinct evidence for each charge.
To convict under Section 304B IPC, evidence of specific instances of cruelty or harassment connected with dowry demands must be established; otherwise, lesser offences may be considered.
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