SUJAN KUMAR DAS Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellants stand convicted for the offence under Section 302/34, IPC and have been sentenced to undergo R.I. for life. Besides, for the offence under Section 201/34, IPC, they have been convicted and sentenced to undergo R.I. for two years. However, both the sentences have been ordered to run concurrently.

(2.) THE substance of the case is that one Usha Das, wife of Sujan Kumar Das, A1, sister -in -law of A2 Shashi Kumar Das, daughter in -law of Sukumar Das A3 and also of Taramani Das A4 (father -in -law and mother -in -law of the deceased) died within four years of her marriage. She (deceased) had one son and at the time of alleged death, as per the post -mortem report, she was also pregnant for the last 5 months. It transpires that the father of the deceased received an information from A2 Sashi Kumar Das, who went to his house, that his daughter was suffering from diarrhoea and her condition was serious. Thereafter, it appears that he came to the matrimonial house of his daughter and saw that his daughter was lying dead and on her neck, there was certain mark of abrasion. He felt that she had been done to death by strangulation. At that time, there was none in that house. After one or two hours the neighbours called them and thereafter the final rites of his daughter was performed.

(3.) THE defence version of the case, as appearing from the trend of the cross - examination, is that Usha Devi had hanged herself and died and the accused persons have been falsely implicated. A suggestion was given to the father of the deceased vide para 18 that his son -in -law informed him that his daughter had committed suicide by knotting her neck by saree and when the knot opened, then she fell down on chouki. In their statement under Section 313, Cr PC, when the attention of the appellants was drawn towards the evidence that appeared and when they were asked what to tell in their defence, the reply of Sajan Das was that he would given the evidence in defence, the same was the reply of Shashi Kumar Das, Sukumar Das said that he has been falsely implicated and Taramani Das said that she has nothing to say in her defence.