Lawmakers should consider a review of law on dowry deaths: SC

New Delhi, May 23 (UNI) The Supreme Court has said the legislature should consider whether the law related to dowry deaths needs to be amended.

A bench comprising Justices S P Sinha and Markandey Katju, while dismissing the appeal of the father of the deceased, Bhagwan Dass,against the Delhi High Court judgement dated July 18, 2006 dropped the charges of Section 306 IPC (Abetment to Suicide) against the in-laws of deceased Shobha.

The court noted, "In view of the above, there is no force in the appeal and hence, it is dismissed. We, however, make it clear that we are not approving or justifying harassment of wives by their husbands or in-laws but are only clarifying the law in the peculiar facts of this case as it stands today. Whether the law should be amended is for the legislature to decide. Appeal dismissed." The apex court while agreeing with the Delhi High Court judgement dropping charges against Section 306, however, observed "We, however, make it clear that if the suicide was due to the demand of dowry soon before her death, then Section 304 B IPC (dowry deaths) may be attracted, whether it is a case of homicide or suicide. In the present case, since no charge under Section 304 B IPC has been framed, obviously the accused cannot be convicted under that provision." Earlier, counsel for the petitioner, Suresh Chand, had contended that it was a case of pre-planned murder of a hapless woman and there was strong circumstantial evidence which clearly pointed to the fact that the deceased had not committed suicide but, in fact, was murdered and later the entire scene was created to make an impression that it was a case of suicide.

The counsel pointed out that the deceased Shobha was found hanging in the room of her two brother-in-laws on first floor while she used to sleep with her handicapped husband and small daughter in the room on ground floor. The pertinent question was where the two brother-in-laws were on the fateful night of March 1, 2000 and where was the ceiling fan as she was found hanging from the hook of the ceiling fan and how Kartar Singh, father-in-law of the deceased, reached her room at about 0215 hrs at night and he immediately called the police without making any efforts to find out whether the deceased was really inside the room and whether she was, in fact, dead. All this points towards the fact that the accused person knew what he and his family had done to the deceased.

Shoba was married to Mangal Singh on January 23, 1992 and was being constantly harassed for more and more dowry and a girl child was born to the couple in Feburary, 1999. Immediately after that, Mangal Singh got injured in a fight with some people and his lower portion was paralysed and he was confined to bed. Later, he was also found dead under mysterious circumstances near the railway track in Preet Vihar area of East Delhi.

The counsel for the respondents O P Saxena, however, contended that there was nothing wrong with the High Court judgement and it had rightly dropped the charges under Section 306 IPC against the accused.

Notably, Section 304 B is applicable only if the married woman dies unnatural death within seven years of her marriage and perhaps in this context, the Supreme Court wants the law to be amended to remove the limitation of seven years so that the culprits do not get away with their crime without being adequately punished. In the present case, the victim was killed after seven years of her marriage and hence, Section 304 B is not applicable.

The apex court had ordered CBI inquiry on August 13,2001 and CBI took more than three years despite the apex court's directions to complete the investigation expeditiously and the complainant was not heard by the High Court despite the application having being filed by him in violation of the Supreme Court ruling in J K International case that the complainant must be heard if the accused were being discharged and in the present case, all the four accused have been let off without trial. The trial had framed charges against the accused on Feburary 28, 2005. Additional Solicitor General R Mohan appeared on the behalf of CBI.

UNI