SURESH BIRA KOLEKAR Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard rival submissions on this Criminal Appeal preferred by the appellant/orig.accused challenging the judgment and order of conviction dated 15 th October, 2003 passed by the Ist Adhoc Additional Sessions Judge, Raigad Alibag in Sessions Case No.210 of 2002.

(2.) The case of the prosecution, in nutshell, is as under : The marriage between the deceased Sonali and appellant/accused Suresh Kumar was performed on or about 2 nd December, 1999. Whereas the incident of burning the victim Sonali occurred on 6.8.2002. Sonali died of 99% burn injuries while taking treatment at Government Hospital on 10.8.2002. According to the case of prosecution, at the time of marriage appellant/accused had no job and it was decided that parents of the victim Sonali would take steps to get a job to her husband i.e. appellant/accused. Accordingly by spending an amount of Rs.50,000/ father of Sonali got appellant/accused employed as mathadi worker. It was also desire of appellant/accused that his brother would also be given job and for that purpose the parents of Sonali should take efforts and spend money. After the marriage though appellant/accused secured job through assistance of parents of Sonali, there used to be demands for money and for securing job to the brother of appellant. On this count, there used to be quarrels between the couple. That time, the couple was staying in one rented room along with their 1 1/2 year son. In fact the younger brother of appellant/accused also started residing with them. Under these circumstances of quarrels and illtreatment, the fateful incident occurred on 6.8.2002. On that night appellant/accused returned from work. He was drunk. He started quarrel with his wife Sonali. He assaulted her. She asked him to take meals first and then to decide about the demand of money etc. Both of them took meal at about 11:30 p.m.. However, thereafter also appellant/accused started assaulting his wife Sonali. She requested him not to assault. However he did not listen and in stead poured kerosene on her person and set her ablaze. Sonali ran outside the house trying to save herself. So also she also tried to caught hold of her husband (appellant/accused) requesting him to save her. In that process, apparently appellant/accused had sustained some burn injuries about 6% to 7%. Unfortunately, the attempts of victim to save herself from the fire were futile. Noticing the commotion, neighbours gathered there. They extinguished the fire. Accused and one person by name Ramchandra Kale from the neighbouring place, took victim Sonali to Uran Hospital in rickshaw. She was immediately treated and then she was removed in ambulance to Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Hospital at Vashi. At the time of admission in the hospital at Vashi, appellant/accused gave history of suicidal burns, whereas on questioning by the attending Doctor Vivek Malpure, victim gave the history that her husband has set her on fire. As such in the medical case papers, there is an endorsement by the attending doctor mentioning both the histories respectively given by appellant/accused and victim. The victim was immediately taken to Emergency Burn Ward for her treatment.

(3.) It is also the case of prosecution that initially Special Executive Magistrate PW4 Nilam Jaysinghani attended the ward on intimation from the police and recorded dying declaration of the victim which is at Exh.30. Thereafter, according to the police PW6 PSI Raghunath Pokale recorded another dying declaration at Exh.36. Apparently, both the dying declarations are in consonance with each other and indict appellant/accused as to pouring kerosene on the person of victim and setting her on fire.