IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE Present:

The Hon’ble Justice Prasenjit Biswas C.R.A. 74 of 1987 Smt. Basanti Chakraborty -Versus-

The State of West Bengal For the Appellant : Ms. Madhurai Sinha, Mr. Souryadeep Ghosh.

For the State : Ms. Pallavi Priyadarshee.

Hearing concluded on : 29.04.2025 Judgment On : 18.06.2025 Prasenjit Biswas, J:-

1. The judgment and order of conviction passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, III Court, Burdwan dated 30.01.1987 in the Sessions Trial No. 54 of 1986 (Sessions Case No. 63 of 1986) is assailed in this appeal.

2. By passing the impugned judgment and order of conviction the learned Trial Court convicted this accused under Section 306 and 498A of Indian Penal Code and she is sentenced to suffer simple imprisonment for two years for the charge under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code and two years for committing offence under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code.

3. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with the said impugned judgement and order of conviction the present appeal is preferred on behalf of the present appellant.

4. The story of the prosecution in nutshell is that -

“The deceased Banalata Chakravortty @ Buno was the daughter of Rabindranath Chatterjee of village Baghar within P.S. Burdwan. She had love affairs with the accused Pradwip Chakravortty and these affairs have culminated in registry marriage between them. The said marriage was disclosed to the parents of the victim who had decided to recognize the marriage through a social marriage between them. The father of the victim and his brother (de-facto complainant) had gone to the house of the accused persons at Talit and gave them proposal. The mother-in-law of the victim was very much annoyed and dissatisfied with the marriage of the victim with her son. At last the father-in-law of the victim agreed to the proposal made by the father and uncle of the victim to him. It is said that the father-in-law of the victim told the father of the victim and his brother to give some articles like gold ornaments of 5 tolas for the bride and one wrist watch for the bride groom including Rs. 1000/- in cash. The father of the victim was agreed to the proposal but in fact he had no capacity to give the values and cash at the time of the marriage because of his financial stringency. It is said by the father of the victim that he gave those articles after the marriage. The marriage was solemnized in the month of Asar and the victim was taken to the house of the accused and the victim started her conjugal life there in. As the father of the victim could not give those articles within short period of marriage, this appellant began to treat the victim unsympathetically and also treated her with cruelty. The victim was not allowed to go to her parent’s house and this appellant used to say abusive languages towards the victim. It is said that when the father and uncle of the victim came to see her in her husband’s house, she narrated before them about the ill-treatment towards her inflicted by this appellant and her son (husband of the victim). After sometime the father of the victim gave a wristwatch to his daughter’s husband on 05.06.1984 and when she went to the house of this appellant for inviting the husband of the victim with her daughter on the occasion of ‘Jamai Sasthi’ festival, the victim was not allowed to go to her father’s house on that festival and she committed suicide in early morning of

08.06.1984.”

5. Over the complaint lodged by the de-facto complainant the concerned police station started a case. The investigation of the case was taken by the same police officer who held the inquest and after completion of investigation charge-sheet was submitted against this appellant along with other accused persons under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code.

6. In this case, prosecution has examined 17 witnesses and documents were marked as exhibits on its behalf. Neither any oral nor any documentary ev