Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Criminal - abetment of suicide - Sections 34, 306 and 498A of Indian Penal
Code, 1860 - whether appellant liable for punishment on circumstantial
evidence - no prosecution witnesses assigned or leveled allegations directly to
appellant - deceased returned her in-laws house prior to one day before death
- no complaint ever made by deceased after marriage related to dowry and
cruelty - prosecution failed to prove that appellant involve in any manner or
abetted deceased for suicide - appellant liable to be acquitted.
JUDGMENT
P.N. Sinha, J.
1 . This appeal is directed against the judgment and order of conviction passed by the
learned Judge, 12th Bench of City Sessions Court, Calcutta in Session Trial No. 1 of
May, 1985 (Sessions Case No. 15 of 1984) whereby the learned Judge sentenced the
appellants to suffer rigorous imprisonment for 8 years each and to pay a fine of Rs.
25,000/-each in default to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year more for offence
under Section 306/34 of IPC. During pendency of the appeal the appellant No. 1
Surajmal Banthia has expired and the appeal against him has abated. Therefore, only
appellant No. 2 Smt. Doli Devi Banthia is before us in this appeal and we are to
consider whether the judgment and order of conviction and sentence imposed on the
appellant is sustained in law and fact.
2 . The prosecution case, in short, is that Kusum Bothra (Banthia), the daughter of
Dhanraj Bothra (PW 1) and Mr. Mohini Bothra (PW 2) was given in marriage with
Indrajit Banthia, son of the appellant on 19th April, 1980. After marriage of Kusum
Banthia her husband and parents of husband started physical torture on her and ill
treated her. On 15.9.1982 at about 18.15 hours PW 1 and 2 received information over
phone from Bijoy Singh Baid (PW 5) that Kusum Banthia (deceased) fell unconscious in
her in-laws flat at 132/1, M.G. Road. Accordingly, PW 1 and 2 rushed to the flat of