SC tells Hisar man to pay Rs1 lakh to in-laws : The Tribune India

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Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, December 24

The Supreme Court has directed a Hisar man to pay compensation of Rs 1 lakh to his in-laws for the treatment of his wife who died due to burn injuries in a suicide attempt following torture for dowry.

A Bench comprising Justices Kurian Joseph and AM Sapre ordered Ramesh Kumar, convicted for subjecting his wife to mental cruelty, and his brother to pay up the amount in a month. If they failed to do so, the Hisar District Magistrate “shall take appropriate coercive action to recover the amount and pay the same to the parents of the deceased within another six months”, the apex court ruled.

The Bench noted that the victim, Chander Kalan, was given medical treatment for nearly 50 days, initially in two government hospitals and subsequently in private hospitals.

The couple had married in April 1995. On January 1, 1997, her husband and in-laws thrashed her for insufficient dowry, knocking off two of her teeth. The couple had reached a compromise then on the intervention of the panchayat.

However, she was beaten up again on June 18, 1998, following which she set herself on fire and suffered 45 per cent burns, and died on August 4 due to septicaemia, a severe infection. Kumar, his parents and two of his brothers were sent on trial for dowry death (Section 304B of IPC) and cruelty (Section 498A of IPC).

The trial court acquitted them under Section 304B, but convicted them under section 498A. The Haryana Government challenged the acquittal in the High Court. During the hearing, the accused parents died. The court set aside the acquittal and sentenced Kumar and his brothers to seven years under Section 304B, prompting them to come to SC in appeal.

Accepting the contention of advocate Rishi Malhotra, who argued for the convicts, the top court set aside the High Court verdict and restored the trial court order, but asked Kumar to pay Rs 1 lakh. It also reduced the sentence under Section 498A to the period already undergone (about two years).