STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH Vs. SANJAY KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The State has filed this appeal challenging the judgment of the learned Additional Sessions Judge-(I), Kangra at Dharamshala, dated 22.3.2002 acquitting both the respondents Sanjay and Fullan Devi (son and mother) for offences under Sections 498-A and 306 IPC for causing the death of Lata Devi wife of Sanjay. The prosecution case in brief is that on 17.1.2001 PW-12 ASI Ramesh Chand, who was Incharge, Police Post, Bhawarna, was in the Sub Divisional Hospital at Palampur, investigating an accident case, where he received a telephonic message that one woman who was lateron identified as Lata Devi had died after consuming poison. He reached the spot at village Ghanetta and found that she was lying dead on a cot presumably having consumed poison. PW-1 Suti Devi, mother of the deceased, had also reached there. In her statement Ex.PW-1/A she states that she has two daughters and one son, Lata being the younger daughter. She was married to accused Sanjay on 6th August, 2000. It was an arranged marriage. She was treated well for about a month, thereafter the deceased started complaining that her husband Sanjay and mother-in-law Fullan Devi used to maltreat her saying that she is dark coloured and had protruding teeth. She was ugly and is not conversant with any household work. She was not fit to be married to Sanjay who was a handsome boy. The deceased had informed her that both these persons wanted to throw her out of the matrimonial house, so they did not treat her well, did not provide adequate food and clothes etc. She talked to her son-in-law and Fullan Devi and persuaded them not to maltreat the deceased, but they did not pay any heed. Recently, near Lohri both, deceased and her son-in-law, visited them and on this occasion also he had beaten the deceased severely in her presence and when she tried to intervene, he assaulted her also and abused her in the foulest language. On 15.1.2001, the deceased went to her matrimonial house and told her that she is fed up with the abuses and beatings given to her by her husband and mother-in-law, she is not being treated well and in case they paid no heed to her request to desist from this behaviour, she would end up losing her life. On 17.1.2001 at around 10.00 A.M. in the morning she was informed by Om Parkash that Lata was dead and she should immediately go to her house She then stated that Lata was forced to take this extreme step of ending her life by consuming poison. She requested that appropriate action in accordance with law be taken against the accused.

(2.) In order to prove its case, the prosecution examined twelve witnesses including PW-1 Suti Devi, PW-2 Nanak Chand, PW-5 Madho Ram to establish the charges of cruelty and abetment to commit suicide.

(3.) The learned trial Court, considering the totality of the evidence on record, acquitted both the accused holding that the prosecution had been unable to establish the ingredients of Sections 306 and 498-A IPC. In reaching this conclusion, the learned trial Court considered the entire evidence on record in detail to hold that there were material contradictions in the evidence of the prosecution case which made the prosecution case highly doubtful.