The Delhi High Court has sentenced a man to seven years imprisonment for subjecting his wife to cruelty and harassing her for dowry, forcing her to commit suicide 15 years ago.
"The evidence placed on record by the prosecution clearly points that the deceased was subjected to harassment and cruelty which was connected to the demand for dowry,” Justice Rajiv Shakdher has said.
The court, while upholding the conviction of Sanjay, a resident of Dakshinpuri, said that the trial court has committed “no error in awarding the sentence” to him and acquitting his mother.
Relying on the testimonies of witnesses, the court said, “What definitely comes through, after analysing witnesses’ account, is that the deceased was harassed on account of bringing insufficient dowry and hence there was a constant demand for dowry.”
On the issue of cruelty, the court said, “Once statements made by the deceased to her relatives are admissible as evidence for offence of dowry death, they could be used for proving case for cruelty.”
Sanjay and the victim, Baby, got married on February 15, 1994 and after almost six months, she committed suicide by hanging herself in her matrimonial home. In 2006, the trial court, while convicting Sanjay, had acquitted Ramshri, the mother of the convict, giving her benefit of doubt.
