MOHAMMED ATHAULLA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present petitioner was accused No.1 in C.C.No.13140/2006, in the Court of learned I Addl.Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Bengaluru, (hereinafter for brevity referred to as 'trial Court'), and tried for the offences punishable under Section 498A of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as ' IPC ') and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as 'D.P.Act').

(2.) The summary of the case of the prosecution in the trial Court was that the complainant Smt.Dilshan Begum was married to accused No.1 (present petitioner) on 27.3.2000 as per the customs and rites prevailing in their community. Accused Nos.2 to 5 (in the trial Court) being the relatives of accused No.1 demanded and collected an amount of Rs.1 lakh, gold ornaments and other household articles from the brother of the complainant at the time of marriage. When the complainant started residing in her matrimonial home after her marriage, all the accused started subjecting her to ill-treatment and physically and mentally tortured her and were demanding her to bring an additional dowry of a sum of Rs.1 lakh. Finally they drove the complainant out of her matrimonial house on 20.9.2005, asking her to return back along with an additional dowry amount of Rs.1 lakh. The complainant was thus constrained to file a complaint against her husband and his relatives arraigning them as accused Nos.1 to 5 with the respondent-Police. After completing the investigation, the respondent-Police have filed the charge sheet against all the accused for the offences punishable under Section 498A of IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of D.P.Act.

(3.) Since the accused pleaded not guilty, they were tried, wherein in order to prove the offences alleged against them, the prosecution examined four witnesses from PW-1 to PW-4 and documents at Exs.P-1 to P-14 were marked. From the accused side, neither any witness was examined nor any documents were marked as exhibits.