VASANTHAKUMARI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Criminal Revision Case is directed against the judgment of acquittal of the trial court, namely learned Sessions Judge, (Fast Track Court No.III), Poonamallee, dated 28.05.2007 made in S.C.No.546/2006.

(2.) THE second respondent herein stood charged in the above said sessions case before the trial court for offences punishable under section 498-A and 306 IPC relating to the death of Sujatha, the wife of the second respondent herein. THE petitioner is none other than the mother of the deceased. She was the de-facto complainant and was also examined as P.W.1 in the session-s case before the trial court. Apart from P.W.1, seven more witnesses were examined on the side of the prosecution. Out of eight witnesses examined on the side of prosecution, three alone were projected as eye witnesses. THEy are P.W.1, P.W.4 and P.W.6. P.W.4 and P.W.6 turned hostile and they did not support the prosecution case. THE learned trial judge, on an appreciation of evidence, came to the conclusion that the solitary evidence of P.W.1, an interested witness, was not reliable and it was not safe to base a conviction on the uncorroborated testimony of P.W.1 and held the second respondent herein/accused to be not guilty of the offences with which he stood charged. Consequently, the learned trial judge acquitted the second respondent herein by his judgment dated 28.05.2007.

(3.) THE deceased Sujatha was the wife of the second respondent/accused. Even according to the prosecution case, they fell in love with each other and got married to each other on 04.11.2004 against the wishes, and without the consent, of the parents of the deceased. According to the prosecution case, though the marriage happened to be a love marriage, within a couple of months from the date of marriage, there arose some misunderstanding following which the second respondent/accused started treating her with cruelty in inebriated mood and also suspecting her fidelity. It is the further case of the prosecution that such cruelty and harassment continued unabated till the date of occurrence, namely 24.06.2005, and the same drove the deceased Sujatha to commit suicide. Based on the said allegations the case originally registered under Section 174 Cr.P.C was subsequently altered into one for offences punishable under sections 498-A and 306 IPC.