GERO DEVI Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Criminal Appeal under Sec. 374(ii) Cr.P.C. has been preferred claiming the following reliefs:-

(2.) The present Criminal Appeal emanates from the report, filed by the complainant-Gorkharam, P.W.-6, on 16/9/2009 at Police Station, Chohtan on the basis of which an F.I.R. bearing No. 139/2009, was lodged and upon investigation, the present appellants were arrested and a charge-sheet was filed against them for the offences under Ss. 498-A and 304-B IPC; thereafter the concerned Court took cognizance against the appellants and forwarded the same to be committed to the concerned Sessions Court, Barmer, for trial. Upon trial, the learned Court below convicted the present appellants for the aforementioned offences, assailing which the appellants have approached this Court, by preferring the present appeal.

(3.) Brief facts of the case, as the pleaded facts and a perusal of the record would reveal that the complainant-Gorkharam averred that his daughter-Shanti (the deceased victim) was married to the appellant no.3-Hanuman Singh, three years prior to the filing of the impugned FIR. That about six months, after the marriage was solemnized between the couple, the appellants being the husband, the mother-in-law and father-in-law of the deceased victim, subjected her to mental and physical harassment in connection with the demands for dowry of Rs.1,00,000.00 and 10 'tolas' of gold, threatening to oust her from her matrimonial home, in case of non-fulfillment of such demands. That upon visiting her paternal home, she had narrated to her father and other family members about attempts made on her life, that her husband and his family had attempted to poison her, if the dowry demand is not fulfilled; whereupon the complainant conveyed to the husband and his family that he did not have the sufficient means to fulfill their demands of dowry, to which they acquiesced; but 15 days prior to the filing of the said complaint, they again began harassing the deceased victim with demands for dowry.