RATAN CHANDRA DAS Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal under Section 374(2) of the Cr.P.C. against the judgment and order of conviction and sentence dated 05.12.2018 delivered in Case No.S.T.47 (GT/U) of 2015 by the Sessions Judge, Gomati Judicial District, Udaipur. By the judgment dated 05.12.2018, the appellant has been convicted under Sections 498A/304B/302/201 of the IPC and also under Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. Pursuant to the finding of conviction, the appellant has been sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for life and to pay fine of Rs.10,000/- with default stipulation for commission of offence punishable under Section 302 of the IPC. The appellant has been further sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 3(three) years and to pay fine of Rs.5,000/- with default stipulation for committing offence punishable under Section 498A of the IPC. He has been further sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 7(seven) years for commission of offence punishable under Section 304B of the IPC. The convict has also sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year for committing offence punishable under Section 201 of the IPC. That apart, the appellant has been sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year and to pay fine of Rs.5000/- with default stipulation for committing offence punishable under Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act. It has been directed that all the sentences as aforestated, shall run concurrently and the period of detention undergone by the appellant shall be set off against the substantive term of imprisonment as per provisions of Section 428 of the Cr.P.C.

(2.) Genesis of the prosecution against the appellant can be located in the complaint dated 23.03.2014 [Exbt.3] filed by one Kabita Saha [PW-1] revealing that her daughter namely Rinku Saha was married to the appellant. After marriage, the appellant and other accused persons namely Ranjit Das [the younger brother of the appellant], Manoranjan Das [the father of the appellant], Smt. Shukla Das [the wife of Sri Ranjit Das] and wife of Shri Manoranjan Das used to torture her daughter physically on different pre-texts and on unlawful demand. Her daughter had informed to PW-1 and their relatives of the said experience. A sum of Rs.10,000/- was given 4/5 months before the occurrence, but the torture did not recede. On 23.03.2014 at about 12.30 p.m., the accused persons, according to the complainant, had killed her daughter by strangulation and thereafter burnt her body by pouring kerosene oil. Ratan Das and his brother Ranjit Das had fled away from the house in the wake of that occurrence. Having received information from the people of Rajnagar, the complainant went to the place of occurrence and found her daughter lying dead behind a hut with several burn injuries. In the place of occurrence, she found the father of the appellant and the wife of the younger brother of the appellant. PW-1 has stated in the complaint that it was her firm belief that the accused persons [as noted in the complaint] killed her daughter as the sum of Rs.40,000/- was not paid to them. On the basis of the said complaint, Udaipur women P.S. Case No.33/2014 was registered under Sections 498A/304B of the IPC and taken up for investigation.

(3.) On completion of the investigation the final police report was submitted chargeshetting the appellant Ratan Das and Smt. Jyotsna Das (the mother of the appellant), Shukla Das (Debnath) and Ranjit Das. Since the major offence is triable by the Sessions Judge, the police papers were committed to the court of the Sessions Judge, Gomati Judicial District, Udaipur and the case was registered as S.T.47 (GT/U) of 2015 in the sessions division. The trial judge thereafter framed the charge against those four accused persons under Sections 498A, 304B, 302 read with Section 34 and Section 201 of the IPC. The charge was also framed under Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. The accused persons pleaded not guilty and claimed to be tried.