1. Though served, but no one is appeared on behalf of the respondents. Today, the Appeal is taken up for hearing.
2. The present appeal, under Section 378 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, is directed against the judgment and order of acquittal dated 30.3.1995 passed by the learned Assistant Sessions Judge, Mehsana, in Sessions Case No.340 of 1993, whereby the accused have been acquitted from the charges leveled against them.
2. Facts in brief of the prosecution case are such that accused No.1 is husband of deceased Rekhaben and the accused No.2 is motherinlaw of deceased. The accused persons caused mental and physical harassment to the deceased. Therefore, as a last resort, the deceased committed suicide by pouring kerosene on herself and set her at fire and died. It is alleged that the accused misbehaved with the deceased and therefore, the attitude on the part of the accused, resulted into committing suicide. Therefore, the offence under Sections 498(A), 114 and 306 of the Indian Penal Code was registered against the accused. Thereafter, necessary investigation was carried out and statements of several witnesses were recorded. During the course of investigation, respondents were arrested and, ultimately, chargesheet was filed against them before the court of learned Judicial Magistrate. Thereafter, as the case was exclusively triable by the Sessions Court, the same was committed to the Sessions Court, which was numbered as Sessions Case No.340 of 1993. The trial was initiated against the respondents accused.
3. To prove the case against the present accused, the prosecution has examined, in all 14 witnesses and also produced several documentary evidence.
4. At the end of trial, after recording the statement of the accused under section 313 of Cr.P.C., and hearing arguments on behalf of prosecution and the defence, the learned Sessions Judge acquitted the respondent of all the charges leveled against him by judgment and order dated 30.3.1995.
5. Being aggrieved by and dissatisfied with the aforesaid judgment and order passed by the Sessions Court, the appellant State has preferred the present appeal.
6. It is submitted by learned APP that the judgment and order of the Sessions Court is against the provisions of law; the Sessions Court has not properly considered the evidence led by the prosecution and looking to the provisions of law itself it is established that the prosecution has proved the whole ingredients of the evidence against the present respondents. Learned APP has also taken this court through the oral as well as the entire documentary evidence. Learned APP Ms. Punani for the appellant – State submitted that from the contents of panchnama, it appears that the deceased committed suicide and a lady by pouring kerosene on herself and set her at fire. From the dying declaration, it is reflected that the deceased committed suicide due to harassment of the accused. Therefore, as per her submission, the aspects of instigation and provocation on the part of the accused are proved. She drew the attention to the oral evidence of P.W. 7 – Becharbhai Nanjibhai at Exhibit 31 and submitted that the accused were causing harassment to the deceased and therefore, the deceased committed suicide and died. She further submitted that from the evidence of the medical expert, it is clearly revealed that the deceased received burn injuries and the incident cannot be said to be accident. She further submitted that both the accused have abetted each other in the commission of the offence. As per her submission, the learned trial Judge without appreciating the evidence on record, wrongly acquitted the accused person and therefore, the judgment and order passed by the learned trial Judge is required to be quashed and set aside by allowing the present Appeal and the order of conviction to the accused may be passed.
8. I have perused the record and considered the submissions made by the parties. I have perused the oral evidence of the witnesses examined by the trial Court. I have perused the contents of complaint, panchnama as well as inquest panchnama and it is come out that the deceased committed suicide by pouring kerosene and set her at fire and died. I have perused the dying declaration at Exhibit 38, wherein the deceased stated that on account of harassment of the accused, she committed suicide. The deceased was able to speak and gave dying declaration with conscious mind. The thumb impression of the deceased is reflected from dying declaration. The reason for taking thumb impression of the deceased on dying declaration is not come out from the evidence on record. It is true that the deceased received burn injuries on her both hands. The thumb impression of the deceased is doubtful and the prosecution has not proved the same. Even from the evidence of medical expert, it is not come out that the deceased poured kerosene on herself. From the record, it is not reflected that the accused persons instigated the deceased to commit suicide. Therefore, the ingredients of Section 498(A), 306 are not established against the accused persons. I have perused the provisions of Section 107 and 108 of the Indian Penal Code and therefore, it can be said that the prosecution has totally failed to prove the case against the accused. Therefore, the offence alleged against the accused persons is not proved and therefore, learned Sessions Judge has rightly appreciated the evidence on record and rightly acquitted the accused.
9. I have gone through the judgment and order passed by the trial court. I have also perused the oral as well as documentary evidence led before the trial court and also considered the submissions made by learned APP for the appellantState. Thus, from the evidence itself, it is established that the prosecution has not proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
10. Learned APP is not in a position to show any evidence to take a contrary view of the matter or that the approach of the trial court is vitiated by some manifest illegality or that the decision is perverse or that the trial court has ignored the material evidence on record.
11. In the above view of the matter, I am of the considered opinion that the trial court was completely justified in acquitting the respondent of the charges leveled against her.
12. I find that the findings recorded by the trial court are absolutely just and proper and in recording the said findings, no illegality or infirmity has been committed by it.
13. I am, therefore, in complete agreement with the findings, ultimate conclusion and the resultant order of acquittal recorded by the court below and hence find no reasons to interfere with the same. Hence the appeal is hereby dismissed. Bail bond, if any, stands cancelled. Record and proceedings to be sent back to trial Court, forthwith.
(Z.K. SAIYED, J.) ynvyas