DHANANJAY KHIRHAR Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ON repeated call, nobody turned up to press this appeal and hence this Court appointed Mrs, Lily Sahay, Advocated to appear in this case aa Amicus Curiae on behalf of the appellants.

(2.) FOUR accused persons Including the three appellants were put on trial for committing the offence under Sections 307/34, 498A of the Indian Penal Code and 3/4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act. The learned 1st Additional Sessions Judge, vide his judgment dated 12th day of July, 1995 in Sessions Case No. 142 of 1992 acquitted the 4th accused namely Manju Devi from all the charges and convicted the appellant, Dhananjay Khirhar, Ram Rekh Khirhar and Tetia Devi, who are the husband, father -in -law and mother -in -law respectively of the informant under Sections 307/34 and 498A of the Indian Penal Code. The appellant No. 1 Dhananjay Khirhar was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years under Sections 307/34 of the Indian Penal Code and he was awarded sentence to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years. So far as the appellants No. 2 and 3 namely Ram Rekh Khirhar and Tetie Devi are concerned, they have awarded sentence to undergo rigorous imprisonment for two years each under Sections 307/34 and 498A of the Indian Penal Code. Both the sentences of all the three appellants were ordered to run concurrently.

(3.) THE prosecution case in short is that on 24.4.1991 the for dbayan of Asthama Devi, who was lying in Government hospital, was recorded by the police wherein it was staled that she had been married with appellant No. 1 Dhananjay Khirhar in the year 1990 and in the last Falgun she came to her sa.su.ral on Dwiragaman. Her father could not give Rs. 25.000/ - in cash, a watch and a cow in dowry at the time of her Dwiragaman, as promised by him, and because of that, in the previous night on 23.4.1991, while she was sleeping in her room, the appellants and Manju Devi (since acquitted) came to her room and overpowered her and nanad Manju Devi started pushing cloth in her month. Thereafter her husband and father - in -law caught hold of her and poured Kerosene Oil on her body and mother -in -law Tetia Devi set fire to her body with a match stick. When the fire on the body rose in flames, the hands of the accused, who had caught hold of her body, started burning then they left her. Thereafter the informant rushed out side crying for help towards the house of her Mama Achamvhit Layak (PW 1) where Achamvhit Layak and Murari Layak, extinguished the fire and then she was taken to hospital in the morning.