STATE OF GUJARAT Vs. HIRAGAURI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is directed against the judgment and order dated 6th October, 1995 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Jamnagar in Sessions Case No.1/1992 whereby he had acquitted the accused of the offences punishable under sections 498-A and 306 read with section 114 of the Indian Penal Code.

(2.) The prosecution case is that on 20th July, 1991 Nirmalaben, wife of Harshadbhai Mansukhrai (the deceased) lodged a first information report alleging that she was residing with her family members at Kalavad. Her husband had a snack shop. She was residing with her mother-in-law, father-in-law, elder brother-in-law, younger brother-in-law and two sisters-in-law. Her marriage had taken place about six years prior thereto and she had a son and a daughter. All the members of her family except her elder brother-in-law, namely, her mother-in-law, father-in-law, younger brother-in-law, two sisters-in-law as well as her husband were subjecting her to extreme harassment on account of which she had, at about 11 o'clock at night on the said day, when all the members were present, taken the lantern and poured kerosene from it all over her body and had lighted a matchstick and set herself ablaze. At this time, she started shouting and her husband had doused the flames. She had sustained severe burn injuries all over her body. Her mother-in-law used to harass her in connection with household articles and her sisters-in-law used to taunt her with respect to household work and used to harass her. Her husband, even if she stayed at her parental home for one day, used to call her a prostitute and used to wrongly suspect her. Moreover, she had brought a watch worth Rs.300/- from her parental home whereupon she was told to bring a watch worth Rs.700/-. On account of instigation by her father-in-law and brother-in-law, her husband time and again used to quarrel with her and had also quarreled with her on the said day. Hence, being fed up with the members of the family, she had decided to shorten her life and sustained burn injuries all over her body. After the incident, persons from the neighbourhood had come and had brought a vehicle from the village and taken her to Irwin Hospital for treatment. Her husband, her elder brother-in-law, her mother-in-law as well as her neighbours Vajubhai and Navalbhai had brought her and she had been admitted for treatment. The aforesaid complaint was recorded by the Police Head Constable on duty at the hospital at Jamnagar on 20th July, 1991. Subsequently, a yadi was sent to the Executive Magistrate for recording the dying declaration of the deceased pursuant to which the Executive Magistrate Arunkumar Janardhan Desai came to the hospital and recorded the dying declaration of the deceased. Later on, the deceased expired while undergoing treatment.

(3.) Pursuant to the registration of the first information report, investigation came to be carried out and chargesheet came to be submitted. During the course of trial, the prosecution examined, in all, ten witnesses and produced certain documentary evidence like the statement of the deceased, dying declaration as well as other evidence on record. The learned Additional Sessions Judge after appreciating the evidence on record, found that the prosecution had not established the charges levelled against the accused beyond reasonable doubt and acquitted them.