VIDHYA DEVI AND ANR. versus STATE OF HARYANA

Citation: [2004] 1 S.C.R. 846 · Decided: 20-01-2004 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: DORAISWAMY RAJU · Disposal: Dismissed

Judgment (excerpt)

A 
VIDHYA DEVI AND ANR. 
V. 
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STATE OF HARYANA 
JANUARY 20, 2004 
B 
[DORA!SWAMY RAJU AND S.B. SINHA, JJ.] 
Penal Code, 1860-Section 304-8-Dowry death-Within 7 years of 
marriage-Deceased subjected to cruelty and harassment for demand of dowry 
c soon before her death-Conviction by Courts below-On appeal, held: 
Conviction justified as all the requirements of the provision have been 
substantiated-The expression 'soon before' is a relative term for which no 
hard and fast rules of any universal application can be laid down by fixing 
any time limit-Evidence Act, 1872-Section 113-8. 
o· 
Words and Phrases: 
'Dowry '-Definition and meaning of in the context of Penal Code, 1860 
and Criminal law (Second amendment) Act, 1983. 
E 
The appellants alongwith other accused were prosecuted under 
Sections 498-A, 304-B and 302 r/w Section 34 IPC for having tortured the 
victim for not complying with demand of dowry and for having caused 
her death by setting her ablaze after 6 years of her marriage with accused 
No.5. According to prosecution, after the marriage accused persons used 
to torture hc!r and make demand for dowry. Four months prior to the date 
F of incident accused had made demand of dowry and for not complying 
with the demand, she was beaten and locked in a room for 4 days from 
where she escaped and lodged complaint with the police, wherein accused 
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Nos.4 and 5, her father-in-law and husband apologized and she came back 
to her matrimonial home. Four months thereafter accused 1, 2 and 3 in 
G 
the absence of accused 4 and 5 set her ablaze. She was taken to hospital, 
in injured condition by her sister and mother on being informed by one 
of the neighbours about the incident. In the course of investigation police 
officer recorded her statement to the effect that she was being tortured 
by the accused for want of sufficient dowry and was set ablaze by three 
K 
of the accused. Thereafter she succumbed to the injuries. 
H 
846 
VIDHY A DEVI v. ST A TE OF HARY ANA 
847 
....... 
Trial Court convicted the appellants-the two accused u/s 304-B IPC A 
while acquitted them of other charges and the other 3 accused were 
acquitted of all the charges. Judgment of the trial court was affirmed by 
High Court. 
In appeal to this Court, appellants contended that the requirements 
B 
of Section 304-B have not been properly substantiated to warrant 
conviction of the appellants under the provision. 
J., 
Dismissing the appeal, the Court 
HELD: 1. In order to attract Section 304-B IPC, the Court must be c 
satisfied that (i) the death of a woman must have been caused by burns 
or bodily injury or otherwise than under normal circumstances; (ii) such 
death must have occurred within seven years of her marriage; (iii) soon 
before her death, the woman must have been subjected to cruelty or 
harassment by her husband or by relatives of her husband; (iv) such 
cruelty or harassment must be for or in connection with demand for D 
dowry; and (v) such cruelty or harassment is shown to ha\'e been meted 
out to the woman soon before her death meaning thereby the proximity 
in point of time and not too remote or state in point of time and relevance. 
The legislature has also taken care to enact a statutory presumption as to 
dowry death by inserting Section 113-B to the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 E 
to the extent that when the question is whether a person has committed 
the dowry death of a woman and it is shown that soon before her death 
such woman has been subjected by such person to cruelty or harassment 
for, or in connection with, any demand for dowry, the Court shall presume 
that such person had caused the dowry death. The materials on record in 
this case amply prove that soon before her unnatural death, which took F 
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place within seven years of her marriage, she was subjected to cruelty and 
harassment both for and in connection with a demand for dowry and that 
the facts brought on record further prove the existence of a proximate 
and live link between the effect of cruelty related to dowry demand and 
the concerned death. The expression 'soon before' is a relative term which G 
requires to be construed in the context a specific circumstances of each 
case and no hard and fast rules of any universal application can be laid 
., 
down by fixing any time limit. 1852-A-EI 
2. In the teeth of the extended definition and meaning of the term 
'Dowry' as brought about by the Criminal Law (Second Amendment) Act, H 
848 
SU

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