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CriAppeal-327-2004-1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAYBENCH AT AURANGABADCRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 327 OF 2004The State of Maharashtra … AppellantVersusAshok Mahadeo Kadam,Age : 31 years, Occu. Agriculture,R/o : Kanegaon, Taluka Lohara,Dist: Osmanabad.… Respondent [Orig. Accused No.3]..…Mr. S. M. Ganachari, APP for the Appellant-State.Mr. Satej S. Jadhav, Advocate for the Respondent.….. CORAM :ABHAY S. WAGHWASE, J. Reserved on: 14.02.2024Pronounced on: 21.02.2024JUDGMENT : 1.The State has preferred instant appeal dissatisfied by judgmentand order of acquittal of present respondent from offence punishableunder Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code [IPC] in Sessions CaseNo. 97 of 2002 passed by learned 4th Adhoc Assistant Sessions Judge,Osmanabad on 12.02.2004.2.Husband and in-laws of deceased Rajkumari, who committedsuicide by consumption of poison, were challaned for commission ofoffence punishable under Sections 498-A and 306 r/w 34 of IPC onthe specific allegation that, after marriage of deceased Rajkumari with CriAppeal-327-2004-2- original accused no.3 Ashok, i.e. present appellant, barely six monthsthereafter, Rajkumari was subjected to harassment. There used to becontinuous taunting and comments on her black complexion and fornot conceiving. Accused also started to put up demand of Rs.50,000/-from her parents to pay the debt towards purchase of JCB machine.On account of non-fulfillment of demand, there was beating to hermaking her life miserable. Deceased used to inform her plight to herparents, who tried to give understanding to the accused, but all wentin vain and beating and harassment continued. Finally, according toprosecution, when it became unbearable, Rajkumari consumed poisonand succumbed to it on 06.08.2001 and therefore crime wasregistered, investigated and on gathering sufficient evidence, accusedpersons were chargesheeted and tried for offence under Sections 498-A and 306 of IPC.3.At trial, prosecution adduced evidence of as many as 11witnesses and sought reliance on documentary evidence likecomplaint, spot panchanama, inquest panchanama, postmortemreport, CA report etc. After appreciating oral and documentaryevidence, learned 4th Adhoc Assistant Sessions Judge, Osmanabadacquitted all accused persons from charge under Section 306 of IPCand husband alone is held guilty for offence under Section 498-A IPC. CriAppeal-327-2004-3- 4.Against such conviction under Section 498-A IPC, appellantpreferred Criminal Appeal No. 20 of 2004 before learned AdditionalSessions Judge, Omerga, who, by judgment and order dated06.11.2004, quashed and set aside the same and appellant isacquitted even of the offence under Section 498-A IPC. 5.To establish its case, prosecution seems to have examinedfollowing witnesses :PW1 Dr. Shendgeis the doctor who treated deceased Rajkumari onher admission on 05.08.2001 on account of history ofpoisoning. His evidence shows that she was admitted by herhusband Ashok i.e. present respondent, but she died on06.08.2001.PW2Dr. Chanmalappa is another doctor who conducted postmortemand opined that death was due to consumption of insecticide,namely, rogor.PW3 Shahaji is father, who lodged report Exhibit 41 and the sumand substance of his evidence is that his daughter was marriedwith accused. For initial five to six months, everything wassmooth but thereafter her husband started beating her whereas CriAppeal-327-2004-4- remaining accused quarreled and abused her. There wastaunting on her complexion and for not bearing child. Heclaims that his deceased daughter told that persons from herhusband’s house are demanding Rs.50,000/- as they hadpurchased JCB machine. According to him, in spite ofunderstanding being given to the accused persons that he ispoor and unable to pay the amount and not to ill-treat hisdaughter, ill-treatment and beating was continued. Thereafter,he deposed that, mother-in-law of deceased brought her to herparents’ house and again made demand or Rs.50,000/-. Thattime his daughter stayed with them for about one and halfmonths. Thereafter appellant husband came and took her withhim on assurance of not quarreling and beating her.He further deposed that, 15 days thereafter when he andmother of deceased went to the house of accused, they saw firstwife of accused husband there and on questioning the same,accused husband beat their daughter in their presence. That, herequested accused not to beat her and returned back. That,same day in the evening he got news about consumption ofmedicine by his daughter and she was admitted in unconsciouscondition till her death. Therefore, he lodged report Exhibit 41. CriAppeal-327-2004-5- His specific accusation is that due to harassment by all accused,his daughter consumed poison and committed suicide. In cross He admitted that his daughter was second wife ofaccused husband Ashok. He also admitted that JCB machinewas purchased jointly by Ashok and one Subhash Mali,Apparao Mali and Satish Lobhe and that it was purchased twoyears prior to the death of deceased Rajkumari. He admittedthat he cannot give exact time, day and month when demandwas made. He admitted that no complaint of beating was madeeven to the Sarpancha or Police Patil. He answered that hisdaughter was admitted in hospital by her husband.PW4 Pandit, an acquaintance of both, accused and informant, didnot support prosecution.PW5 Kisan and PW6 Govind, panchas to spot panchanama Exhibit45, also did not support prosecution.PW7 Rajkanya, sister of deceased, alleged that all family membersused to harass her sister, taunt about her complexion and beather and mentally harass her. That, they demanded Rs.50,000/-for JCB and when demand was not met, she was beaten byhusband. CriAppeal-327-2004-6- PW8 Kantabai, cousin maternal aunt of deceased and neighbour ofaccused stated that deceased suffered agony after four to fivemonths of her marriage. She deposed that husband of deceasedharassed her, beat her but this witness in examination-in-chiefitself stated that she does not know the reason for the beatingand harassment.PW9 Chandrasen, an acquaintance and resident of the same village,did not support prosecution.PW10 Bhagirathibai, mother of deceased deposed that after marriage,everything was smooth for six months, but thereafter there wasmental harassment. There were comments and taunting on hercomplexion, about not bearing child and not being suitable totheir house. There was also demand of Rs.50,000/- forpurchase of JCB machine. Thereafter, one day they receivedmessage that their daughter was admitted and when they went,she was found unconscious.In cross, she has denied that each time when her daughtercame to her house, accused used to take her back. Sheadmitted that daughter had no issues. She admitted that policehad come for drawing panchanama of dead body and at the CriAppeal-327-2004-7- time no complaint was made to the police. She admitted thatshe did not give statement to police that daughter does nothave issues and there was harassment. Omissions are broughtabout husband beating by kicks and fist blows and aboutmental harassment.PW 11 is the Investigating Officer.ANALYSIS6.On careful scrutiny of the above evidence, here, trial court hasacquitted all accused except husband Ashok. However, he alone washeld guilty, that too only for offence punishable under Section 498-AIPC, which conviction has also been set aside in appeal by learnedAdditional Sessions Judge, Omerga. Now, State is challenging theacquittal seeking his conviction under Sections 498-A and 306 of IPC.7.On carefully re-appreciating the evidence of parents and sister,one does not come across any evidence to show that there wasabetment, inducement or enticement by accused husband with soleintention that she should commit suicide and end her life. Taking intoaccount the settled legal position, there is absolutely no evidencewhatsoever on the point of abetment or inducement to commitsuicide. What happened in proximity to the alleged consumption is CriAppeal-327-2004-8- also not coming on record. Therefore, exactly for what reason therewas consumption not getting established, prayers raised byprosecution for holding appellant guilty of the offence of 306 of IPCcannot be accepted. There is absolutely no evidence to convict him foroffence under Section 306 IPC. Essential ingredients for attractingcharge under Section 306 IPC being patently missing, prayer so raisedcannot be granted.8.So far as charge under Section 498-A is concerned, also there isno cogent, reliable evidence except bare allegations by parents andsister, without independent corroboration. Even PW8 Kantabai,cousin maternal aunt and neighbour of accused, was not having anyknowledge about so called demand of Rs.50,000/-. She deposedabout ill-treatment to deceased but is found silent on the cause for ill-treatment. Even there is variance in the version of parents on thepoint of beating to deceased in their presence. As per PW3 father,such incident occurred on the very day of consumption, however,PW10 mother deposed about deposed that beating occurred two tothree days prior to consumption of poison. That apart, even if it isaccepted that there was beating to deceased in presence of herparents, then question arises as to what prevented parents frompromptly reporting the same. The incident of consumption is on CriAppeal-327-2004-9- 05.08.2001 and death is of 06.08.2001. Record reveals that relativesof deceased were present at the time of inquest and spotpanchanamas which were drawn on 06.08.2001 itself. However, nonebothered to lodge report even at such time. FIR came to be lodgednext day i.e. at 14.15 hours on 07.08.2001. Hence, there is delay inlodging FIR which has gone unexplained. 9.Consequently, in the considered opinion of this court, evencharge under Section 498-A of IPC has not been established. LearnedAdditional Sessions Judge, Osmanabad has rightly acquitted theappellant from the offence of 498-A IPC. There being no merit in theappeal, I proceed to pass the following order:ORDERThe criminal appeal is dismissed. [ABHAY S. WAGHWASE, J.]vre