D.S.TEWATIA, J.

1. Raj Kumar appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 158-SB of 1980 and Rajinder Kumar appellant in Criminal Appeal No. 183-SB of 1980 were tried together for the offence of abetment of suicide by Smt. Sita Devi wife of Rajinder Kumar appellant. They were both found guilty of the charge and were convicted and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for three years and to a fine of Rs. 200.00 and in default of payment thereof to further rigorous imprisonment for four months each under Section 306, I.P.C. They have challenged their conviction and sentence through aforesaid two separate appeals.

2. These appeals being disposable by a single Judge in the first instance were laid before me. Considering the importance of the legal question particularly when viewed in the context of emerging scenario of what has come to be known in the daily press as dowry deaths, the decision of these appeals was referred to a larger Bench. That is how these appeals are before us which we propose to dispose of by a common judgment.

3. The prosecution case briefly put is that Sita Devi, married to Rajinder Kumar some five years prior to the occurrence had a son from him, who on the date of occ