SHAKUNTALABEN DATTATRAY Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant has been convicted for the offences punishable under Sections 498A and 306 read with Section 114 of the Indian Penal Code (for short "IPC") by impugned judgment and order dated 22.06.1999 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Surat, Camp at Vyara in Sessions Case No. 84 of 1998 lodged against the appellant, who is the mother -in -law of deceased -Alkaben and two others viz. Popat Dattatray Suryavanshi -husband of the deceased and Dattatray Bhimsingh Suryavanshi -father -in -law of the deceased. The appeal is preferred only by the mother -in -law -original accused No. 3.

(2.) BY impugned judgment and order, the appellant has been sentenced to rigorous imprisonment of one and half years with a fine of Rs. 200/ - for the offence punishable under Section 498A of IPC and three years with a fine of Rs. 300/ - for the offence punishable under Section 306 of IPC and a default sentence respectively of one month and two months simple imprisonment is also imposed upon the appellant. This appeal is, therefore, filed questioning the impugned judgment and order under Section 374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short "Cr.P.C.").

(3.) IN the FIR Exh:10, the complainant -father of the deceased PW:1 Exh:9 came out with the story that his daughter deceased aged 18 years was married to Popat Dattatray Suryavanshi before about six months of the date of the incident and she was taken to the place of the accused by them from her parental house on 16.11.1997 and within a month thereafter, PW:1 approached deceased and her in -laws at her matrimonial house of the deceased with a request to the appellant to let deceased accompany him to her paternal house. The request was turned down with a demand of money. It is also the case of the complainant that he learnt about the harassment and cruelty meted out to the deceased from her. The complainant returned without deceased on that day and after some time, he again went to the in -laws of the deceased at her matrimonial house on 28.12.1997 to fetch her and no one was found present there except the appellant from whom, he learnt on inquiry that the deceased had gone to respond to nature's call at about 5:00 a.m. and after her return, she left the house stating that she was going for collection of animal dung, but did not return thereafter. As he could not trace her even after inquiry with his relations, the appellant lodged the complaint that the deceased was missing. The complainant, however, smelt a foul play and suspected the deceased having committed suicide on account of cruelty and harassment meted out by in -laws to her. The complainant, therefore, went to Bhuriwell Ukai area in search of the deceased and had a night halt in the house of Rameshbhai Bajirav PW:6 Exh:16. On the next morning i.e. 29.12.1997, the search for her was continued and ultimately, her dead body was found floating on the water, stuck in the net of the water canal near Thermal Power Station.