SANJAY KUMAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) 1. These three appeals are filed against the same judgment and order passed by the trial Court. These were, therefore, heard together and are being disposed of by this common judgment. There are two appellants in each of the three appeals; each of them stands convicted under Sections 304 -B/34 and 201 of the Penal Code and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for ten years and two years respectively under two counts. All the appellants, excepting appellant No. 1 Ajay Kumar Mehta in Criminal Appeal No. 47/98 were also convicted under Section 498 -A of the Penal Code and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years. The sentences were, however, directed to run concurrently.

(2.) Among the six accused Ajay Kumar Singh (Appellant No. 2 in Criminal Appeal No. 47/98) is the victim's husband; appellant Yoganand Singh (Appellant No. 2 in Criminal Appeal No. 36 of 1998) and Vina Devi (Appellant No. 2 in Criminal Appeal No. 17/98) are the father -in -law and the mother -in -law respectively of the victim; Sanjay Kumar Singh (Appellant No. 1 in Criminal Appeal No. 17/98) and Kaushal Kumar Singh (Appellant No. 1 in Criminal Appeal No. 36/98) are the two brothers of the victim's husband. The sixth appellant. Ajay Kumar Mehta (Appellant No. 1 in Criminal Appeal No. 47/1998) is family friend of the victim's in -laws.

(3.) The prosecution case was instituted on the basis of the first information report (Ext.3) lodged by Kameshwar Prasad Yadav (PW 13), the father of the victim girl on 22.11.1995 at Raniganj P.S. giving rise to Raniganj P.S. Case No. 211/1995. In the first inforrmtion report, it was stated that the informants daughter Anju Devi was married to Ajay Kumar Singh, son of Yoganand Singh in June 1994, according to Hindu rites. On 20.11.1995 the informant came to learn at his village home that his daughter was killed by her in -laws for non -fulfilment of their demand for dowry. On receiving this information, the informant along with his son Ashok Kumar Yadav (not examined) and some of his co -villagers went to his daughter's 'Sasural' in village Barhara and reached there at 2 p.m. on 22.11.1995. There they made enquiries about his daughter and came to learn from Ram Charitra Yadav, the Mukhiya and the members of his family and other villagers, both male and female, that in the night of 18.11.1995 the accused persons, namely, Ajay Kumar Singh (the informant's son -in -law), his brother Sanjay Kumar Singh, his father Yoganand Singh, his mother (whose name the informant could not learn) and his friend Ajay Kumar Mehta and Ajay Kumar Mehta's wife, killed his daughter by strangulating her with a piece of string in connection with their demands for dowry. He further learnt that on 19.11.1995 at about 9.10 p.m. they carried her body to the bank of a river and burnt it there by pouring kerosene oil over it. Making further enquiries they went to the place on the river bank where the body was said to have been burnt and found there burnt pieces of bones and fragments of bangles. The informant also came to learn there that shortly before she was killed, she was being oppressed by her Sasural people in connection with their demands for dowry. The informants Samdhi Yoganand Singh had also written him several letters in which demands for dowry were made. It was further stated in the first information report that on 19.11.1995 the informant had received by post a letter from her daughter in which she had expressed great sorrow and pain and had also stated that it was her last letter. In the past also he had received letters from her daughter stating that she was subjected to cruelty by her 'Sasural' people in connection with their demand for dowry. At the time of lodging the first information report, he also produced before the police the burnt pieces of bones, pieces of bangles and two letters and this fact finds mention in the first information report itself. The contents of the first information report were read out to him and finding them to be correct he put his signature thereon.