‘Lengthy dying declaration impossible with 96% burns’: Bombay High Court acquits man sentenced to life for wife’s ‘murder’

Justices Nitin B Suryawanshi and Vaishali Patil Jadhav found that both the dying declarations cannot be said to be voluntary and truthful.

The bench was hearing the appeal filed by the 30-year-old husband who challenged the life sentence awarded by the trial court in March 2023.

Variance in 2 dying declarations

• The Bombay High Court noted that there is a variance in the two dying declarations and that they both have glaring infirmities.
• It found that the dying declarations cannot be said to be voluntary, truthful and hence would not inspire the confidence of the court.
• It was found that in the first dying declaration, the incident, according to the victim, arose because of her sister-in-law’s call.
• On the other hand, in the second dying declaration, it stated that the incident had occurred at 5 am, when her husband assaulted her as she had not woken up to do some work.
• The Bombay High Court pointed out that the conviction of the accused cannot be upheld due to a variance in the dying declarations and the serious infirmities in them.
• It also mentioned that the medical papers and the statement of the doctor show that the victim was given sedatives and painkillers, and in such a condition, there is a doubt about her mental condition.
• The bench held that the accused is to be acquitted of the charge under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code, and directed his release.
• The Bombay High Court further directed that the fine amount, if paid by the accused, be refunded to him upon completion of the appeal period.

Death within 1.5 years of marriage

• The present case arose from the death of a married woman who suffered severe burn injuries at her matrimonial home in July 2019.
• According to the prosecution, the victim married the accused around 1.5 years before the incident and was allegedly subjected to harassment and ill-treatment by her husband and in-laws after marriage.
• The prosecution alleged that on July 19, 2019, after a quarrel in the morning, the husband set her on fire at their house. It was alleged that the neighbours shifted her first to the government hospital.
• It was further found in this case that while undergoing treatment, two separate dying declarations were recorded – one by an executive magistrate and another by a police head constable.
• Based on these statements, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered. Subsequently, the victim succumbed to her injuries on July 23, 2019.
• Following the investigation, a chargesheet was filed against the victim’s husband, father-in-law and mother-in-law.
• During the trial, the husband was convicted of murder under IPC Section 302 and sentenced to life imprisonment in March 2023, while the other two accused were acquitted.
• Aggrieved by this order, the husband challenged the conviction before the Bombay High Court.

Inconsistent, unreliable dying declarations

Appearing for the man, advocate U B Bilolikar submitted before the Bombay High Court that the prosecution’s case rests entirely on two dying declarations, which are not consistent, trustworthy and reliable.

He emphasised that the doctor had stated that the victim was in poor general condition and was uncooperative, and because of pain, she was groaning, thereby rendering the statement unreliable.

He further submitted that in the absence of a trustworthy dying declaration, the trial court should have looked for corroboration, but there is no corroborative evidence or independent witnesses.

‘Accused set the victim on fire’

On the other hand, the Assistant Public Prosecutor submitted before the Bombay High Court that in both the dying declarations, the victim had categorically stated that the accused poured kerosene on her and set her on fire.

He added that the trial court has properly appreciated the evidence and rightly convicted the accused. He further submitted that there is no merit in the appeal and the same is liable to be dismissed.