ARIFBHAI MOHAMMEDBHAI PARMAR Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this appeal under section 374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Code'), the appellants (convicts) have challenged the judgment and order dated 28th March 2012, passed by the learned 8th Additional District and Sessions Judge, (Ad Hoc), Vadodara in Sessions Case No.184 of 2009, whereby the appellants herein have been convicted for the offence under section 302 read with section 114 of the Indian Penal Code and have been sentenced to life imprisonment and fine of Rs.1,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to undergo further rigorous imprisonment for two months.

(2.) The prosecution case, in brief, is that the informant Afsanaben Mahammedbhai Parmar, aged 24 years, gave her complaint before the Investigating Officer, whereafter she passed away. As per the complaint lodged by the informant she was residing at Sarsavni village with her father-in-law, mother-in-law and her husband and was doing household work. Out of the wedlock she had a two-year old daughter by the name of Asma. On 5.7.2009 in the morning at 8:00 o'clock, the informant's mother-in-law, namely, Umedben started saying that she was not cooking and in this manner picked up a quarrel with the informant, due to which the informant told her that she was falsely maligning her. Whereupon, there was an of exchange of words and accused Umedben as well as the informant's father-in-law Mohammedbhai caught hold of the informant, and her husband Arifbhai, poured kerosene from a can on her and lit a matchstick and set her ablaze, due to which she started screaming and her sister-in-law Mehmoodaben came there and put a quilt over her and extinguished the flames. The informant had sustained burn injuries all over her body, and hence, she was taken to the Padra Government Hospital for treatment in a 108-van and from there she was referred with a memorandum to the SSG Hospital at Vadodara for treatment. The informant has further stated that the accused has told her that she should not complain against them to the police and had threatened her in this manner. Thus, the informant was taken to the SSG Hospital at Vadodara for treatment, where she died on 5.7.2009 while undergoing treatment. Accordingly, a first information report, being Padra Police Station I-C.R. No.145 of 2009, came to be registered for the offences punishable under sections 302, 498A and 114 of the Indian Penal Code.

(3.) Pursuant to the first information being registered the Investigating Officer carried out investigation and upon finding sufficient material, submitted a charge sheet in the court of the learned Judicial Magistrate, First Class, Padra. As the case was triable only by a Court of Sessions, it came to be committed to the Sessions Court at Vadodara, where it came to be registered as Sessions Case No.184 of 2009.