RANGANATHA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present appeal is directed against the judgment of conviction and sentence passed by the sessions court in S.C. 125/07 which was pending on the file of I Additional Sessions Judge, Mangalore. Appellant is the sole accused in the said case. He had faced trial for the offences punishable under Sections 498A, 304B, I.P.C. and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, (hereinafter referred to as the Act, for brevity). He is found guilty for the offences punishable under Sections 498A, 304B, I.P.C. and Sec. 4 of the D.P. Act and is sentenced to undergo RI for a period of 3 years and to pay a fine of Rs. 10,000/ - for the offence punishable under Sec. 498A, I.P.C., to undergo 12 years RI for the offence punishable under Sec. 304B, I.P.C. and to undergo RI for a period of 2 years and to pay a fine of Rs. 10.000/ - for the offence punishable under Sec. 4 of the D.P. Act. The learned Judge, by the impugned judgment of conviction and sentence dated 6.5.2010, has directed that the substantive sentences shall run concurrently.

(2.) The case of the prosecution is that the deceased, a lady named Nandini married the accused according to Hindu customs on 4.5.2007 in a kalyan mantap in Vijaynagar, Bengaluru City. At the time of marriage, it is alleged that the accused and his family members demanded the deceased and her parents to give dowry and pursuant to such demand, they gave one gold case wrist watch worth Rs. 10,000/ -, a gold chain, gold bracelet and a gold ring. After the marriage, the couple had been to the house of the parents of the deceased and stayed there for 3 days and later on he went to Mangalore leaving her in the house of his father, since he was working as a stenographer in Coast Guard, Mangalore.

(3.) On 1.6.2007, the accused came back from Mangalore to take his wife. On 3.6.2007, both of them went to Mangalore and resided in the house taken on rent from PW5 -Giriyappa at Kulai. The allegation against the accused is that he was coming home drunk and was abusing the deceased by using filthy language and demanding her to bring Rs. 1,00,000/ - from her parental house. Being unable to withstand the torture meted out to her in relation to payment of dowry, the victim -Nandini committed suicide by hanging herself in the rented house of the accused at Kulai in Mangaluru on 29.6.2007 at 10.00 p.m.