SHAHID ALIAS SHABBU Vs. STATE OF UTTARAKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PRAFULLA C. Pant, J. This appeal, preferred under Section 374 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred as Cr. P. C.), is directed against the judgment and order dated 09-10-2006, passed by learned Sessions Judge, Dehradun, in Sessions Trial No. 17 of 2005, whereby accused/ appellant Mohd. Shahid alias Shabbu is convicted under Sections 498-A and 304-B of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter referred as I. PC.), and ac cused/appellant Rashid Ahmed alias Munna is convicted under Section 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. Accused / appellant Mohd. Shahid alias Shabbu is sentenced by said court to imprisonment for life under Section 304b I. P. C. and rig orous imprisonment for a period of two years and directed to pay fine of Rs. 5. 000/- under Section 498a I. P. C. , in de fault of payment of which he is directed to undergo further six months' rigorous imprisonment. Accused / appellant Rashid Ahmed alias Munna is sentenced to rig orous imprisonment for a period of one year and also directed to pay find of Rs. 10,000/- under Section 4 of Dowry Pro hibition Act, 1961, with further direction that in case of default he shall undergo further six months' rigorous imprisonment.

(2.) HEARD learned counsel for the par ties and perused the lower court record.

(3.) BEFORE further discussions it is. pertinent to mention here the relevant provisions of law applicable to the present case. The expression 'dowry death' is defined under Section 304b which provides that where the death of a woman is caused by any burns or bodily injury or occurs otherwise than under normal circumstances within seven years of her marriage and it is shown that soon before her death she was sub jected to cruelty or harassment by her husband or any relative of her husband for or in connection with, any demand of dowry, such death shall be called 'dowry death'. It further provides that such husband and relative shall be deemed to have caused the death. Sec tion 113a of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 provides that when the question is whether the commission of suicide by a woman had been abetted by her hus band or any relative of her husband and it is shown that she had committed sui cide within a period of seven years from the date of her marriage and that her husband or such relative of her husband had subjected her to cruelty, the court may presume having regard to all other circumstances of the case that such sui cide had been abetted by her husband or by such relative of her husband. If further provides that for the purposes of this Section (113a) 'cruelty' shall have same meaning as in Section 498a of I. P. C. Section 498a of I. P. C. in its ex planation, defines word 'cruelty'. It pro vides that any willful conduct which is of such nature as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (whether mental or physical) of the woman or harassment of the woman where such harassment as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (whether mental or physi cal) of the woman of harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view to coercing her or any person re lated to her to meet any unlawful de mand for any property or valuable se curity or is on account of failure by her or any person related to her to meet such demand, shall be cruelty.