SATISH SHANKARRAO GHORGE Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant has been convicted under section 304-B of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to suffer R. I. for four years and to pay a fine of Rs. 1000/- in default to suffer R. I. for three months more and he has also been convicted under section 498-A of the I. P. C. and sentenced to suffer R. I. for three years and to pay a fine of Rs. 300/- in default to suffer R. I. for one month more by Additional Sessions Judge, Satara. The substantive sentences were directed to run concurrently.

(2.) THE prosecutions case, in short, is that P. W. No. 2s (Shamrao Dhondiba Wagh) daughter Ujvala was given in marriage to accused Satish on 24-5-1987. Accused Satish had started harassing and ill-treating deceased Ujvala and demanding an amount of Rs. 2000/- for his tempo. The accused wanted to purchase a new tempo or wanted to repair his old tempo by that amount. In January 1988 deceased Ujvala had informed her parents that she had a fall from the cot and she had sustained an incised wound on her forehead and the injury was sutured. Thereupon P. W. 2 Shamrao Wagh went to see his daughter Ujvala at her matrimonial home at Bhadale. She was taken for delivery in or about July 1988. She delivered a male child on 12-8-1988. While deceased Ujvala was in her parents house she had informed her parents that the injury was actually not caused to her by a fall from the cot but caused by her husband by assaulting her with stick.

(3.) AFTER the delivery deceased Ujvala again went to her husbands house on 10-4-1989. It is the case of the prosecution that P. W. No. 2 Shamrao has received a letter from Ujvala on 3-5-1989 stating that she was coming to Satara with her husband and son in the Hospital of Dr. Darbhe for the treatment of her son. Accordingly, P. W. No. 2 with his wife P. W. 3 Shantabai went to Satara to meet her in the hospital. It is the case of P. W. No. 2 that there was some talk between deceased Ujvala and her mother P. W. No. 3 Shantabai. At that time she had in fact seen that there were burn injuries caused to both wrists of the deceased. According to P. W. Nos. 2 and 3, deceased Ujvala then told to them that the accused was demanding Rs. 2000/ and he was harassing her on that count. It is also disclosed from the conversation between deceased and her mother that the accused had also threatened the deceased that she should not disclose that fact to her parents or else she would be killed. P. W. No. 4 Nandkumar who is the brother of deceased Ujvala was sent to the matrimonial home of deceased Ujvala. He went to the matrimonial home of the deceased on two successive occasions and he came back and reported to his parents that the ill-treatment was continued unabated. On 20-5-1989, at about 12-00 noon, the parents had received a message from their relatives of Bhadale that Ujvala had sustained certain burn injuries at about 9. 00 a. m. to 9. 30 a. m. Immediately on the receipt of said message P. W. No. 2 Shamrao left for Bhadale and reached the matrimonial home of the deceased. Then he and the other relatives saw that Ujvala was already expired. Her dead body was kept in the house and it was covered with bed sheet. After some times they left the place.