K. SHRI RAM REDDY Vs. STATE OF TELANGANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Criminal Petition is filed under Sec. 482 Cr.P.C. seeking to quash the proceedings against the petitioners/A-1 to A-4 in connection with Crime No. 297 of 2021 of P.S. WPS, DD, Hyderabad, registered for the offences punishable under Ss. 498-A, 406 and 509 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Ss. 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.

(2.) The case of the de facto complainant is that her marriage was held with A-1 on 25/11/2020 in the presence of family and friends and at the time of wedding, her parents gave jewellery worth about Rs.10.23 crores approximately and her maternal grand mother and maternal aunt gifted her Rs.5,00,000.00 each and few of her other relatives gave her gifts in the form of cash amounting to Rs.10,00,000.00 out of love and affection. There was a puja (Satyanarayana vratham) at her in-laws' house on 26/11/2020 where she received gifts in the form of cash amounting to Rs.2,00,000.00 and she handed over her jewellery worth Rs.10.23 crores approximately and cash of Rs.22,00,000.00 to her mother-in-law for safe custody. Right from the date of her marriage, her husband/A-1 was indifferent towards her and used to consume alcohol and watch TV shows during night and was not keen on spending time with her. On 3/12/2020, she wanted to resume her internship at Apollo hospital but her mother-in-law did not allow her to go to the hospital and asked to stay at home. Her father made all the payments for the honeymoon bookings at Udaipur and they stayed there from 9/12/2020 to 13/12/2020 and while returning back, her husband started humiliating her making his intention clear for unlawful material gain from her parents that he was not given any costly car and that her family is a waste on that account. He called her a dog and hit her in the presence of his parents. She had bruises but her mother-in-law did not shop him and moreover, she went to the extent of saying "Oh my son is very strong". On 14/12/2020, she resumed her internship and that night she used her phone for a short while in the bed room and her husband got extremely impatient and angry and when she was checking messages, he hit his phone to the floor which broke into pieces and shouted at her saying that he wants to divorce her. On 19/12/2020, herself and her husband had an argument on the proposed visit to Goa along with his cousins and friends for the new year and he insisted that his close friend Huzaif Ali Khan would share his bedroom with them to which she refused as it was not appropriate for a newly married couple to share a room with a male friend. Regarding that issue, he lost his temper and threatened to divorce her in front of his parents and went to the extent of threatening to pack his clothes and leave the house. Her mother-in-law, instead of correcting her son's behaviour, shouted at her that it would be better if they take a divorce and snatched her phone and switched it off and threatened not to talk to her parents about this issue. On 25/12/2020, her husband abruptly left her on the road and she was deeply anguished and stayed back at her parents' house. On the next day morning, her mother-in-law called her and threatened to return back to her in-laws place. During their stay at Goa, after her mother-in-law's continuous persuasion and assurance that her husband will not share the room with his friend, her husband's behaviour became unbearable and he constantly humiliated her in front of other members of the group by using derogatory language and called me a 'Bitch' in front of his cousins. She felt humiliated as it resulted in insult to her modesty. On 3/1/2021 from the airport itself, her husband asked her parents to pick her up and her brother brought her to her parents' house. Her matrimonial life has come to an end all of a sudden on account of such a drastic decision taken by her in-laws based on some false information given by her husband resulting in abandoning her within 40 days of her marriage. Her husband and in-laws asked her to go to her parents' house from the airport and made it clear that she should not even try to come back to their house.

(3.) Sri B. Chandrasen Reddy, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the petitioners, submits that a bare reading of the complaint does not attract any of the offences as alleged and hence, it is prayed to quash the proceedings against the petitioners.