STATE OF PUNJAB Vs. PAWAN KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HARMESH Chand (23), his brother Pawan Kumar (21) and their father Ram Dhari (50) were tried for offences under Section 302/304 of the Indian Penal Cod by the Additional Sessions, Judge, Sangrur, and acquitted by judgment dated November 24, 1983. Aggrieved by the acquittal, the State has preferred this appeal for obtaining leave under section 378 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Ashok Kumar, brother of the deceased, who lodged the first information report in this case, has filed Criminal Revision No. 269 of 1984 assailing the said acquittal and the said revision petition is also being disposed of by this judgment.

(2.) SAROJ alias Neelam, deceased in this case, was married to Harmesh Chand accused on April 16, 1982. Within less than three months of the marriage, the she died of extensive burn injuries at the house of her husband and in-laws on July 8, 1982, at 6/7 a.m. The first information report was lodged by the deceased's brother Ashok Kumar PW-3 at 12.20/12.45 p.m. the same day. Special report was received by the Judicial Magistrate, at Sangrur at 7.45 p.m. According to the first information report, the parents of the girl had agreed to spend and did actually spend Rs. one lakh on the marriage in accordance with the wishes of the husband and his father. They had given one scooter, refrigerator, gold ornaments weighing about 25 tolas as apart from furniture, clothes, beds, utensils and case. Thereafter from time to time they had been giving cash amounts to the husband and father-in-law in accordance with the custom prevalent in their family. The husband and the father-in-law of the girl were, however, not happy with the dowry given by the parents of the deceased. The deceased complained to her brother and father that her in-laws and husband taunted her for bringing nothing in dowry. Her husband once gave her a beating. On July 7, 1982, Ashok Kumar visited his sister on the eve of the festival called Bhai-Bhinna and offered Rs. 21/- each to the father-in-law and mother-in-law of his sister. They refused to accept the above amounts. Ashok Kumar offered to take his sister along-with him to his parents' house, upon which the in-laws of Saroj told him that they would send Saroj to her parents' house once and for all times. Ashok Kumar returned without bringing Saroj to his house and narrated the entire incident to his parents. On the day of occurrence i.e. July 8, 1982, Ram Nath son of Kaka Ram, also a resident of Dhuri, to which place parents of Saroj belonged, told him that he had received a telephonic message from Sunam, where Saroj was married, that Saroj had died. The deceased's brother and other relations went to Sunam and found Saroj lying dead. The first information report was concluded in the following words :

(3.) THE prosecution also examined Ashok Kumar, brother, and Bhim Sain, nephew of the deceased, with regard to the performance of the marriage, the giving of gifts, the dissatisfaction of the husband and in-laws over the dowry, their taunts to the deceased etc. Raj Kumar PW7 and Lakhi Ram PW9, who are respectively the husbands of the two other sisters of the deceased, also married at Sunam, deposed about the extra-judicial confession made by Harmesh Chand accused and his brother Pawan Kumar and S.I. Jhanda Singh, (PW10) and District Inspector Bakhshish Singh (PW-1) who partly investigated this case.