minal Appeal No 629 of 1985
From the Judgment and Order dated 2561985 of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in Criminal Appeal No 637 of 1983
KMadhava Reddy A Subba Rao and ADN Rao for the Appellants
G Prabhakar for the Respondent
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by DRANAND J
The curse of dowry has claimed yet another victim
Kundula Bala Subrahmanyam the husband of the deceased Kundula Koti Nagbani and his mother Kundula Annapurna mother in law of the deceased have filed this appeal under Section 2a of the against the judgment of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh Hyderabad dated 2561985 setting aside the judgment of acquittal passed by the Sessions Judge East Godavari Division and convicting both the appellants for an offence under Section 30234 IPC and sentencing each of them to suffer imprisonment for life
On 23rd of August 1981 between 1230100 pm on hearing screams and cry of deceased Kundula Koti Nagbani at that time aged about 18 years Pulapa Lakshmi PW2 Vempati Paparao PW3 and Vempati Radha PW4 rushed to the house of the appellant and found both the appellants along with the father of appellant No 1 father in law of the deceased hurriedly coming out of the kitchen while the deceased was lying on the floor engulfed in flames
Since the appellants or the father in law of the deceased were making no attempts to put off the flames PW2 asked appellant No 1 to give her something so that she could extinguish the fire
He however did not respond
She then requested first appellant s father to give something to her so that the fire could be put off
The father of appellant No 1 enquired if he should get a bucket of water
PW2 thereupon requested him to give either a bed sheet or a blanket
The father of appellant No 1 then brought out a bed sheet Bontha from the cot and 675 as he was passing it on to PW2 the mother in law of the deceased appellant No 2 told her husband not to give the bontha to PW2
PW2 in the meanwhile took the bontha from the father of the first appellant and tried to extinguish the fire
The deceased turned her side
She was alive
The deceased asked PW2 for some water
Since the petticoat of the deceased was burning PW3 the father of PW2 who had also rushed along with her to the house of the appellant broke the thread of the petticoat to save her from further burning and threw away the burning garments In the process he also received some burn injuries
PW2 poured water into the mouth of the deceased and enquired from her as to what had happened
The deceased told her that her mother in law had poured kerosene over her and her husband had set fire to her
The deceased again felt thirsty and asked for more water which was again given to her by PW2
The above statement made by the deceased to PW2 was overheard by PW3 and some others who had also reached on hearing the cries
Vempati Nagabhushanam PW5 another immediate neighbor of the appellants living only about 2 yards away also heard the cries of the deceased and rushed to the house of the appellant
He noticed PW3 was pulling out the petticoat of the deceased while PW2 was attempting to extinguish fire
He saw PW2 pouring water into the mouth of the deceased
He also heard the statement made by the deceased to PW2 about the manner in which she had been set on fire
PW5 thereupon went away to inform the maternal uncle of the deceased at Malakapalli
On the way he met one Ramakrishna coming on a motor cycle and at his request Ramakrishna gave him a ride to Malakapalli
On reaching the house of the maternal uncle of the deceased they found the brother of the deceased Vempati Sreerama Krishna Sreeram PWl was also present there
He conveyed to them the information regarding the burning of the deceased and also what he had heard the deceased telling PW2
Ramarao and PWl then went on the same motorcycle to Dharmavaram
PWl reached the house of the appellant and saw a number of persons including PWs 2 and 3 gathered there
The deceased was lying on the floor and at that time she had no clothes on her
He noticed that she had received burn injuries from her breasts downwards to her legs
On seeing her plight PW1 started crying and hitting his head against a pillar
When the deceased noticed that PW1 had come she asked PW2 to call her brother PWl inside
PW2 thereupon went out and brought PW1 to the kitchen where the deceased took the palm of PWl into her own palms and told him in Hindi please tell mother and father as I am 676 telling you
My mother in law poured kerosene on me and my husband set fire
You tell father and mother about this
Don t fight
Anyhow I am dying
 She also told her brother PW1 to take back the cash given to her and divide it amongst the sisters in equal share and get them married off to nice persons
At this juncture the first appellant husband of the deceased came inside the kitchen and with folded hands begged the deceased for forgiveness saying that he would not repeat what he had done and therefore he may be pardoned
PWl got wild and caught hold of the neck of the first appellant
PW2 and PW3 rushed towards them and released the first appellant from the hold of PW1 and sent PWl to another uncle s house and told the uncle that since PWl was in an agitated mood he should take care of him
Within an hour however PWl went back to the house of the deceased and by that time a local Doctor PW6 Dr R Radha krishnamurthy had arrived at the house and was giving first aid to her and she was lying on a cot in the verandah
PW6 at about 330 pm advised the removal of the deceased to the Government Hospital at Kovvur
A matador van was secured and at about 430 pm PW1 Ramarao his maternal uncle the wife of Ramarao and some other neighbors took the deceased to the Government Hospital at Kovvur in the matador van reaching there at about 5 pm
At about 530 pm Dr K Parameswaradas PW9 examined the deceased and declared her dead
PWl thereupon went to the police station which is adjacent to the hospital alongwith his uncle and lodged the report exhibit
P4 with the Head Constable Md Navabjani PW12
A case under section 302 IPC was registered and information was sent to Inspector of Police G Scendavce Rao PW14 on telephone
After collecting a copy of the FIR PW14 proceeded to the Government Hospital and from there went to the scene of occurrence
He seized M0 s 1 to 3 drew the site plan of the scene of occurrence and examined PWs 1 to 5 and PW9 at Dharmavaram
He also held the inquest proceedings from 630 am to 830 am on August 24 1981 and after getting the postmortem conducted handed over the dead body to the family of the deceased
PW9 Dr K Parameswaradas who conducted the postmortem examination in his report ExPl8 noted extensive burns to the extent of 90 on the body of the deceased and opined that the deceased had died due to the extensive burns all over the body and that the injuries were sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death
During the investigation the investigating officer made a request for the preservation of viscera of the deceased so that it could be sent for chemical examination as according to the state 677 ment of PW6 the deceased had allegedly told him that she had consumed dettol to commit suicide and since she could not bear the pain she had set herself on fire
The report of the chemical examiner exhibit
Pl6 however revealed that no poison was detected and that the death had been caused due to extensive burns
Further investigation into the case was carried out by Md Baduruddin PW15 Inspector of the Crime Branch
During the investigation the father of the deceased Venkataramana handed over letters Exs
Pl P3 to the investigating officer
Both the appellants had made themselves scarce and were not found in the village when search for them was made by the investigating officer
The first appellant surrendered in the court on 10111981 while the second appellant surrendered in the court on 7th of December 1981
After the investigation was over challan was filed and both the appellants were sent up for trial in the Court of Sessions Judge East Godavari Division at Rajahmundry
At the trial the prosecution inter alia relied upon the following circumstances with a view to connect the appellant with the crime 1 Motive 2 Two dying declarations made to PW2 and to PW1 3 Medical Evidence 4 Conduct of the appellant immediately and after the occurrence 5 Absconding of the appellants
The appellants when examined under Section 313 of the Criminal Procedure Code denied their involvement and stated the case to be a false one
They however produced no defence
The learned Trial Court did not accept the prosecution version and held that there was no motive for the appellant to commit the crime that the evidence of PWs 2 to 4 could not be relied upon that PWI had made improvements in his statements recorded at the trial and therefore the oral dying declaration made to him could not be relied upon
The Trial court also held that there had been unexplained delay in lodging report with the police
The Trial Court placed reliance on the testimony of hostile 678 witness PW6 and held that the case was one of suicide and not of murder
On those findings the learned Sessions Judge acquitted both the appellants
On an appeal filed by the State a Division Bench of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh set aside the judgment of the learned Sessions Judge and convicted both the appellants for an offence under Section 30234 IPC
Speaking for the Division Bench K Ramaswamy J as His Lordship then was found no hesitation to hold PWl as a witness of truth and a wholly reliable witness and also opined that the evidence of PWs 2 and 3 was trustworthy and reliable
The dying declarations made by the deceased to PW2 and subsequently to PWl were believed and relied upon
It was held that report exhibit
P4 had been given by PWl immediately after the deceased was declared dead by the Doctor and therefore there was no delay much less unexplained delay in lodging the report
While dealing with the conduct of the appellant it was opined that their conduct was inconsistent with their innocence and consistent only with the hypothesis that appellant No 2 had committed the act of pouring kerosene on the deceased and appellant No 1 had lit fire
With regard to the existence of motive it was held that the appellants were actuated with a motive to do away with the life of the deceased for not getting the land registered in the name of the first appellant
Finally the High Court found that the chain of the established circumstances was complete and the circumstances were sufficient to conclusive establish that the appellants and the appellants alone had committed the crime of murder of the deceased
The High Court held that the consideration of evidence on record and the reasoning of the Trial Court was most unsatisfactory and could not be sustained and therefore set aside the order of acquittal and convicted both the appellants for the offence under Section 30234 IPC and sentenced each one of them to imprisonment for life
Appearing for the appellants before us Mr Madhav Reddy the learned Senior Counsel urged that since the Trial Court had acquitted the appellants the High Court was not justified in recording an order of conviction as the findings recorded by the Trial Court could not be said to be perverse
It was argued that the dying declarations were not worthy of reliance and the motive was feeble and not established
Learned counsel submitted that the surrendering of the appellants themselves in the court on 10111981 and 7121981 itself was enough to show that they had no 679 guilty conscious and the prosecution was not justified in relying upon the conduct as an adverse conduct against the appellants
While explaining the conduct of the appellants at the time of and after the occurrence he submitted that since all neighbors had become hostile out of fear the appellants did not act either to put off the fire or remove the deceased to the hospital
In reply learned counsel for the State argued that the findings of the Trial Court were not only conjectural but also perverse and the evidence of the witnesses was disbelieved on mere surmises
It was submitted that the Trial Court did not property discuss the two dying declarations mad by the deceased and since the dying declarations have been proved by reliable evidence those by themselves could form the basis of conviction of the appellants
It was then submitted that the High Court after a careful appraisal of the evidence had rightly set aside the judgment of the Trial Court which suffered from illegality as well as manifest error and perversity
Learned counsel submitted that the prosecution had established the case against the appellants beyond every reasonable doubt and their appeals deserve to be dismissed
Admittedly there is no eye witness in the case
The case is sought to be established by the prosecution from circumstantial evidence
In a case based on circumstantial evidence the settled law is that the circumstance from which the conclusion of guilt is drawn should be fully proved an these circumstances must be conclusive in nature
Moreover all the established circumstances should be complete and there should be no gap in the chain of evidence
The proved circumstances must be consistent only wit the hypothesis of the guilt of the accused alone and totally inconsistent wit his innocence
The courts have therefore the duty to carefully scrutinize the evidence and deal with each circumstance carefully and thereafter fin whether the chain of the established circumstances is complete or no before passing an order of conviction
It is in the light of the above principles that we shall deal with various circumstances relied upon by the prosecution
1Motive In a case based on circumstantial evidence motive as sums great significance as its existence is an enlightening factor in process of presumptive reasoning
The motive in this case is alleged to be the greed of dowry
680 On 1851979 marriage between the appellant and the deceased was solemnised
The deceased aged about 18 years was prosecuting her Intermediate course of study at that time
She was the eldest of the five children of one Vempati Venkataramana who at the relevant time was working as an Assistant Engineer with the Railways at Gorakhpur
At the time of the marriage the parents of the deceased had agreed to give Rs 50000 in cash 50 sovereigns of gold and two acres of land as dowry
The cash was paid at the time of the marriage itself alongwith 15 sovereigns of gold
The parents of the deceased had promised to give the remaining 35 gold sovereigns and get the land also registered subsequently though the possession of the land measuring about 370 acres was given to the appellant No 1
The mother in law of the deceased and her husband had been pressurising the deceased all along to bring the remaining sovereigns and also to get the land registered in the name of the first appellant
She conveyed it to her mother PW7
While the parents of the deceased agreed to get the land registered in the name of the deceased the first appellant and his parents were insisting that the land should be got registered in his name and not in the name of the deceased
Since that desire was not fulfilled the deceased was being continuously harassed and ill treated
A strick vigil was kept on her at the house of her in laws and she was not even allowed to meet anybody nor were the neighbors permitted to come and meet or talk to her
She was being prevented from writing letters to her family also but stealthy she wrote letters Exs
Pl 3 and got them posted through a neighbor
The contents of those letters are rather revealing and expose the extent of the harassment to which the deceased was being subjected to by her mother in law and her husband
After seeing the contents of the letters and with a view to find out the cause of her distress PW1 her brother went to Dharmavaram on August 22 1981 to the house of the deceased
The deceased however was so terrorised that she could not speak to him freely
She was surrounded by her husband and her mother in law who did not talk to PWl at all to show their indifference
From the evidence of the prosecution witnesses and particularly that of the mother of the deceased PW7 the immediate provocation was the insistence of the appellants that the land be got registered in the name of the husband and the reluctance  of the parents of the deceased to do so and instead their desire to get it registered in the name of the deceased
The oral evidence led by the prosecution in this behalf is wholly consistent
In her letter exhibit
P2 the 681 deceased had clearly mentioned that she was getting her letters posted through PW4
She requested her sisters to write letters to her in Hindi so that her in laws who did not know Hindi could not know what was being written
In one of her letters a part of which was addressed to her sister she wrote  I am not going to anybody s house
One day I went to the house of sister in law Radha to deliver the letter secretly
Their mood was changed on account of going to their house
That is why I stopped going
 Do not mention even a single word in your letter that I have been writing to you
Ask mother not to worry
On hearing about your results write a letter without fail
If I get an opportunity I will definitely write a letter  In her letter exhibit
P1 to her father she wrote Father I am feeling much bore here because no one come to our house nor I am allowed to go their house Please always write letters
So that I may be satisfied in seeing your letters
If I may not give reply to your letter then you please don t mind it
You know here s conditions
Rest is OK Father you also take care of your health
 In the same letter while addressing her sisters she wrote The lock is opened
I am writing this letter secretly
In reply do not write that you have received the letter
If you write like that these people will become more angry She also wrote to her sister not at house and there is no watch over me
I am getting the letters posted through sister in law Radha secretly
You write letters mostly in Hindi only so that even if they chanced to fall in the hands of any one they cannot understand The tenor of her letters disclose the distressing state of affairs at the house 682 of her in laws
These letters coupled with the evidence of her mother go to show how the deceased was being tormented and harassed
It is indeed a shame and pity that within just two years of her marriage her dream of a happy married life was shattered and she found herself almost as a prisoner and a frightened chicken  who had to write letters to her parents and sisters secretly  for the fear that if her in laws came to know they would become more angry 
She had to request her sisters to reply to her letters in Hindi so that even if they chanced to fall in the hands of anyone they cannot understand
One can only imagine the plight of this young bride and the sadistic behavior born out of greed for dowry of her husband and mother in law
Not having been able to get the land registered in the name of the first appellant appears to have frustrated them to the extent of murdering the young wife
The evidence led by the prosecution to establish the existence of motive is wholly reliable and is also consistent
The prosecution has successfully established that the appellants had strong and compelling motive to commit the crime because of her parents not agreeing to get the land registered in the name of the first appellant and their insistence to have the land registered in the name of their own daughter instead
The motive has been conclusively established by the prosecution and we have no hesitation to hold that the prosecution has succeeded in establishing the existence of the motive for both the appellants to commit the crime conclusively and positively and we agree with the finding of the High Court in that behalf
2Dying Declarations The next piece of circumstantial evidence relied upon by the prosecution are two dying declarations made by the deceased
According to the prosecution case the deceased made the first dying declara tion before PW2 when she after hearing her cries came to the house and found both the appellants and the father of appellant No 1 coming out of the kitchen and the deceased lying on the floor engulfed in flames
According to PW2 the deceased told her that her mother in law had poured kerosene on her and her husband had set her on fire
This statement was also heard by PW3  PW5
The second dying declaration was made by the deceased to her brother PW1 after he was called by her to the kitchen
The deceased according to the prosecution case on meeting her brother took the palm of PWl into her own palms and inter alia told to him that her mother in law poured kerosene on her and her husband set fire to her
The statement made by the deceased to 683 PW1 was in Hindi
Both the statements as noticed above relate to the circumstances leading to the cause of her death as according to the medical evidence the deceased died of 90 burn injuries
Both the dying declarations are oral
They have been made to friends and to the brother of the deceased respectively
In view of the close relationship of the witnesses to whom the oral dying declarations were made it becomes necessary for us to carefully scrutinize and appreciate the evidence of the witnesses to the dying declaration
We have already adverted to the evidence of these witnesses PW1 PW2 PW3 while narrating the prosecution case
Indeed PWl is the brother of the deceased and therefore a very close relation but mere relationship cannot be a ground to discard his testimony if it is otherwise found to be reliable and trustworthy
In the natural course of events the deceased who was on the verge of her death would have conveyed to her near and dear ones the circumstances leading to her receiving the burn injuries
PW1 has given a very consistent statement and has reproduced the words of the deceased clearly and truthfully
Nothing has been brought out in the cross examination to discredit his testimony at all
He had at the earliest point of time disclosed as to what the deceased had told to him
The discrepancy pointed out by learned counsel for the appellants as to whether the dying declaration was made to him by his sister when she was lying on the cot in the verandah as stated in FIR ExP4 or while she was lying on the floor of the kitchen is of an insignificant nature and could be either out of confusion or the gap of time between the making of the two statements
Moreover PW1 was not at all cross examined on the alleged discrepancy when he gave evidence in Court
No explanation whatsoever was sought from him about the so called discrepancy
PW1 the brother of the deceased appears to us to be a truthful witness and his testimony has impressed us
He did not implicate the father of the appellant and gave evidence only about what he was actually told by his sister
From our appreciation of the evidence of PW1 we agree with the view expressed by the High Court that considering the case from all perspectives we have no hesitation to hold that PW1 is a witness of truth worthy of acceptance and so he is wholly a reliable witness
exhibit
P4 is a voluntary statement given by PW1 and it lends corroboration to the evidence of PW1
 Coming now to the evidence of PWs2 and 3
The substratum of their evidence with regard to the dying declaration is that while that they were 684 in the kitchen of their own house taking tea they heard the cry of a lady and rushed to the house of the deceased being her close neighbors
They saw the deceased engulfed in flames sprawled on the floor of the kitchen
They also saw both the appellants as well as the father of appellant No 1 coming out of the kitchen to the verandah
The distance between the house of PWs2 and 3 from the house of appellant is only 2 yards
After PW2 took a bontha from the father in law of the deceased to the annoyance of appellant No 2 with a view to extinguish the fire the deceased on enquiry by the witness as to what had happened told her that my mother in law poured kerosene on me and my husband set me on fire
The deceased had not implicated her father in law though he was also present there  PW3 father of PW2 had assisted PW2 to extinguish the flames and it was he who broke the string of the petticoat of the deceased and threw it away
In the process PW3 himself suffered burn injuries
His injuries were examined by the Doctor and found to be caused by fire
The Trial Court doubted the testimony of PW3 on the ground that he had made some improvement in his evidence in court when he stated that he had heard the deceased screaming and saying that she was being killed
He had not stated so in his statement recorded during the investigation
This in our opinion is hardly an improvement of any consequence because both in his statement in court as well as the one recorded under Section 161 Cr
PC he has deposed that it was on hearing the screams  of the deceased that he and his daughter rushed to the house of the decased
In any event the so called improvement was not sufficient to discard his testimony
Despite searching cross examination of both these witnesses nothing has been brought out in their cross examination to discredit them or doubt their veracity at all
After carefully analysing their evidence we find PWs 2 and 3 as witnesses worthy of credence and trustworthy
From the evidence of PWs 1 2 and 3 both the dying declarations are proved to have been made by the deceased
They are the statements made by the deceased and relate to the circumstances leading to her death
Both the dying declarations are consistent with each other and appear to have been made by the deceased voluntarily and in the natural course of events
They have a ring of truth about them
Section 321 of the Evidence Act is an exception to the general rule that hearsay evidence is not admissible evidence and unless evidence is tested by cross examination it is not credit worthy
Under Section 32 when 685 a statement is made by a person as to the cause of death or as to any of the circumstances which result in his death in cases in which the cause of that person s death comes into question such a statement oral or in writing made by the deceased to the witness is a relevant fact and is admissible in evidence
The statement made by the deceased called the dying declaration falls in that category provided it has been made by the deceased while in a fit mental condition
A dying declaration made by person on the verge of his death has a special sanctity as at that solemn moment a person is most unlikely to make any untrue statement
The shadow of impending death is by itself the guarantee of the truth of the statement made by the deceased regarding the causes or circumstances leading to his death
A dying declaration therefore enjoys almost a sacrosanct status as a piece of evidence coming as it does from the mouth of the deceased victim
Once the statement of the dying person and the evidence of the witnesses testifying to the same passes the test of careful scrutiny of the courts it becomes a very important and a reliable piece of evidence and if the court is satisfied that the dying declaration is true and free from any embellishment such a dying declaration by itself can be sufficient for recording conviction even without looking for any corroboration
If there are more than one dying declarations then the court has also to scrutinise all the dying declarations to find out if each one of these passes the test of being trustworthy
The Court must further find out whether the different dying declarations are consistent with each other in material particulars before accepting and relying upon the same
Having read the evidence of PWs 1 3 with great care and attention we are of the view that their testimony is based on intrinsic truth
Both the dying declarations are consistent with each other in all material facts and particulars
That the deceased was in a proper mental condition to make the dying declaration or that they were voluntary has neither been doubted by the defence in the course of cross examination of the witnesses nor even in the course of arguments both in the High Court and before us
Both the dying declarations have passed the test of creditworthiness and they suffer from no infirmity whatsoever
We have therefore no hesitation to hold that the prosecution has successfully established a very crucial piece of circumstantial evidence in the case that the deceased had voluntarily made the dying declarations implicating both the appellants and disclosing the manner in which she had been put on fire shortly before her death
This circumstance therefore has been established by the prosecution beyond every reasonable 686 doubt by clear and cogent evidence
3Medical Evidence The next circumstance relied upon by the prosecution is the medical evidence which has been provided by the testimony of Dr Parameswaradas PW9
He deposed that the deceased had died of 90 burns and that kerosene smell was emitting from the deadbody
According to the report of the chemical examiner no poison was found in the viscera
The chemical examiner s report coupled with the other evidence on record belies the suggestion made by the defence during the cross examination of some witnesses that with a view to commit suicide the deceased had drunk dettol and when she could not bear the pain on account of consumption of dettol she herself poured kerosene oil on herself and set herself on fire
Rightly this defence case was not pursued before us with any amount of seriousness by the learned counsel for the appellants
The medical evidence therefore fully corroborates the prosecution case and lends support to the dying declaration and more particularly the manner in which the deceased had been set on fire
Conduct of the appellant immediately and after the evidence The conduct of the appellants son and mother both at the time when the deceased lay burning on the floor of the kitchen and afterwards till she succumbed to the burn injuries is the next circumstance relied upon by the prosecution to connect the appellants with the crime
From the testimony of PWs 2 3 and 4 who are the immediate neighbors of the appellant and the deceased they had heard the cry of the deceased and rushed to her house
PWs 2 and 3 found the deceased lying on the floor of the kitchen engulfed in flames while both the appellants and father in law of the deceased were coming out of the kitchen in the verandah
None of the two appellants or the father in law made any attempt whatsoever to extinguish the fire and save the deceased
The raised no alarm
They stood there as if waiting for her death rather than make any effort to save her
Their conduct thus runs consistent with the hypothesis of their guilt and betrays that of an innocent persons
In their statements under Section 313 of Cr PC they did not deny their presence in the house at the time of the occurrence but denied their involvement in the crime
The normal human conduct of any person finding someone engulfed in flames would be to make all efforts to put off the flames and save the life of the person
Though the appellants were the closest relations 687 of the deceased they did not do anything of the kind
Let alone making any effort to extinguish the fire according to PW2 when the father in law of the deceased at her request was giving her the bontha to extinguish the flames appellant No 2 the mother in law of the deceased objected to the same
This conduct speaks volumes about the extent of hatred which the mother in law exhibited towards her daughter in law
They rendered no first aid to the deceased
Their conduct at the time of the occurrence therefore clearly points towards their guilt and is inconsistent with their ingnocence the appellants did not even accompany the deceased to the hospital in the matador van
Had the husband not been a party to the crime one would have expected that he would be the first person to take steps to remove the deceased to the hospital and leave no stone unturned to save her life
An innocent mother in law would have also done the same even if she had no love or emotional feelings for her daughter in law
Neither the husband nor the mother in law of the deceased took any steps to remove the deceased to the hospital let alone accompany her to the hospital
This conduct also is inconsistent with their innocence and consistent only with the hypothesis as stated by the deceased in her dying declarations that the mother in law had poured kerosene on her while her husband had lit fire and put her on flames
Mr Reddy the learned senior counsel appearing for the appellants submitted that since the neighbors and other relations of the deceased had almost taken over the house and the person of the daughter in law the appellants were afraid of being beaten and as such they rendered no aid to the deceased needs a notice only to be rejected
No suggestion whatsoever on these lines was made to any of the witnesses and in any event such an explanation betrays common sense
Since the deceased had admittedly suffered burn injuries in the kitchen of her house there was an obligation on the part of the appellants and the father in law of the deceased who have admitted their presence in the house at the time of occurrence to explain the circumstances leading to the deceased dying of 90 burn injuries
None has been offered
The theory of suicide was put up only as an argument of despair
While discussing the motive and the dying declarations we have come to the conclusion that the deceased died as a result of the designed move on the part of both the appellants to put an end to her life and she did not commit suicide as was sought to be suggested during cross examination by the defence to some witnesses
The theory of suicide has no legs to stand upon
The conduct of the appellants who did not try to extinguish the fire or 688 render any first aid to her also totally betrays the theory of suicide and we agree with the High Court that the theory as set up by the appellants is highly unbelievable or acceptable
The prosecution has thus successfully established that the conduct of both the appellants both at the time of the occurrence and immediately thereafter is consistent only with the hypothesis of the guilt of the appellants and inconsistent with their innoncence
5 Absconding
Prosecution has also relied upon the circumstances of the absconding of the appellants to prove its case
A closer link with the conduct of the appellants both at the time of the occurrence and immediately thereafter is also the circumstance relating to their absconding
Md Badruddin PW15 the investigating officer deposed that he had taken up the investigation of the case and having examined PWsl 4 had caused search to be made for the accused but they were not found in the village and despite search they could not be traced
Appellant No 1 surrendered before the court on 10111981 while appellant No 2 surrundered in the court on 7121981
No explanation worth the name much less a satisfactory explanation has been furnished by the appellants about their absence from the village till they surrendered in the court in the face of such a gruesome tragedy 
Indeed absconding by itself may not be a positive circumstance consistent only with the hypothesis of guilt of the accused because it is not unknown that even innocent persons may run away for fear of being falsely involved in a criminal case and arrested by the police but coupled with the other circumstances which we have discussed above the absconding of the appellants assumes importance and significance
The prosecution has successfully established this circumstance also to connect the appellants with the crime In view of the above discussion and our appraisal and analysis of the evidence on record we have no hesitation to hold that theprosecution has successfully established all the circumstances appearing in the evidence against the appellants by clear cogent and reliable evidence and the chain of the established circumstances is complete and has no gaps whatsoever and the same conclusively establishes that the appellants and appellants alone committed the crime of murdering the deceased on the fateful day in the manner suggested by the prosecution
All the established circumstances are consistent only with the hypothesis that it was the appellants alone 689 who committedthe crime And the circumstances are inconsistent with any hypothesis other than their guilt
It is most unfortunate that the husband of the deceased not only failed to perform his duties and obligations as husband to protect and take care of his wife as per the marriage vows and instead joined his mother in the most degrading and cold blooded murder of the young innocent bride
Of late there has been an alarming increase in cases relating to harassment torture abetted suicides and dowry deaths of young innocent brides
This growing cult of violence and exploitation of the young brides though keeps on sending shock waves to the civilised society whenever it happens continues unabated
There is a constant erosion of the basic human values of tolerance and the spirit of live and let live 
Lack of education and economic dependence of women have encouraged the greedy perpetrators of the crime
It is more disturbing and sad that in most of such reported cases it is the woman who plays a pivotal role in this crime against the younger woman as in this case with the husband either acting as a mute spectator or even an active participant in the crime in utter disregard of his matrimonial obligations
In many cases it has been noticed that the husband even after marriage continues to be Mamma s baby and the umbilical cord appears not to have been cut even at that stage
We are here tempted to recall the observations of RN Mishra J as His Lordship then was in State Delhi Administration vs Laxman  Ors
Appeals 93 and 94 of 1984 decided on 2391985 while dealing with a bride burning case
It was observed Marriage according to the community to which parties belong is sacramental and is believed to have been ordained in heaven
The religious rites performed at the marriage altar clearly indicate that the man accepts the woman as his better half by assuring her protection as guardian ensuring food and necessaries of life as the provider guaranteeing companionship as the mate and by resolving that the pleasures and sorrows in the pursuit of life shall be shared with her and Dharma shall be observed
If this be the concept marriage there would be no scope to look for worldly considerations particularly dowry
When a girl is transplanted from her natural setting into 690 an alien family the care expected is bound to be more than in the case of a plant
Plant has fife but the girl has a more developed one
Human emotions are unknown to the plant life
In the growing years in the natural setting the girl now a bride has formed her own habits gathered her own impressions developed her own aptitudes and got used to a way of life
In the new setting some of these have to be accepted and some she has to surrender
This process of adaptation is not and cannot be one sided
Give and take live and let live are the ways of life and when the bride is received in the new family she must have a feeling of welcome and by the fond bonds of love and affection grace and generosity attachment and consideration that she may receive in the family of the husband she will get into a new mould the mould which would last for her life
She has to get used to a new set of relationships one type with the husband another with the parents in law a different one with the other superiors and yet a different one with the younger ones in the family
For this she would require loving guidance
The elders in the family including the mother in law are expected to show her the way
The husband has to stand as a mountain of support ready to protect her and espouse her cause where she is on the right and equally ready to cover her either by pulling her up or protecting her willingly taking the responsibility on to himself when she is At fault
The process has to be a natural one and there has to be exhibition of cooperation and willingness from every side
Otherwise how would the transplant succeed Awakening of the collective consciousness is the need of the day
Change of heart and attittide is what is needed
If man were to regain his harmony with others and replace hatred greed selfishness and anger by mutual love trust and understanding and if woman were to receive education and become economically independent the possibility of this pernicious social evit dying a natural death may not remain a dream only
The legislature realising the gravity of the situation has amended the laws and provided for stringent punishments in such cases and even permitted the raising of presumptions against an accused in cases of unnatural deaths of 691 the brides within the first seven years of their marriage
 The was enacted in 1961 and has been amended from time to time but this piece of soicial legislation keeping in view the growing menance of the social evil also does not appear to have served much purpose as dowry seekers are hardly brought to book and convictions recorded are rather few
Laws are not enough to combat the evil
A wider social movement of educating women of their rights to conquer the menance is what is needed more particularly in rural areas where women are still largely uneducated and less aware of their rights and fall an easy prey to their exploitation
The role of courts under the circumstances assumes greater importance and it is expected that the courts would deal with such cases in a more realistic manner and not allow the criminals to escape on account of procedural technicalities or insignificant lacunas in the evidence as otherwise the criminals would receive encouragement and the victims of crime would be totally discouraged by the crime going unpunished
The courts are expected to be sensitive in cases involving crime against women
The verdict of acquittal made by the Trial Court in this cast is an apt illustration of the lack of sensitivity on the part of the Trial Court
It recorded the verdict of acquittal on mere surmises and conjectures and disregarded the evidence of the witnesses for wholly insufficient and insignificant reasons
It ignored the vital factors of the case without even properly discussing the same
The High Court was therefore perfectly justified in convicting the appellants for the offence of murder punishable under Section 302 readwith Section 34 IPC and sentencing each one of them to suffer imprisonment for life
We uphold the conviction and sentence of the appellants for the offence under Section 30234 IPC and dismiss their appeal
The appellants were directed to be released on bail by this Court on 3031989
Their bail bonds are cancelled and they are directed to be taken in to custody to suffer the remaining period of their sentence
VPR Appeal dismissed


Summary:
The visually handicapped constitute a significant section of our society
As it is necessary to encourage their participation in every walk of life
The Central Ministry of Welfare has been undertaking various measures to utilise their potentialities
The Governments have launched schemes to educate train and provide them with useful employment
The Central Government has provided 3 reservation in Group C and D posts for physically handicapped including blind and partially blind while demand is growing for reservations in Group A and B posts
The Standing Committee of the Ministry of Welfare undertook identification of jobs in these categories and submitted its report on October 31 1986
Para 8 thereof related to the blind
It took note of reading and writing deficiency and suggested the provision of allowance
And found that the specified 416 posts in Group A and B are suitable for blind and partially blind
So the Ministry of Personnel issued office memorandum dated November 25 1986 a accepting the report and took policy decision regarding identification of jobs for the physically handicapped persons in Group A and B posts filled to be by direct recruitment in Central Govern ment Services and Public Sector Undertakings
This court examined the memorandum and found that the Government had taken cognizance of the identified jobs that the Government had 557 decided about the recruitment of handicapped lessons to these posts that the departments would supplement the list further that the MinistriesDepartments would inform the UPSC about preferential treatment to handicapped candidates that the UPSC had agreed in principle to give preference and that the Department of Personnel and Training would be issuing general instructions for the purpose
However the decisions were not implemented for seven years
So the petitioner approached this Court seeking a writ in the nature of mandamus directing the Union of India and the UPSC to permit the blind candidates to compete for the IAS and Allied Services and to provide them facility of writing the civil services examination either in Braille Script or with the help of a scribe
On hearing the counsel for the petitioner himself visually handicapped this Court HELD The performance of the counsel for the petitioner before us has amply proved the point that the visually handicapped persons can perform the jobs entrusted to them with equal efficiency
However the question of giving preference to the handicapped in the matter of recruitment to the identified posts is a matter for the Government of India to decide
The Government of India is commended to decide the question of providing preferencereservation to the handicapped in Group A and B Posts
564 C D E This Court further held that there are number of post which are required to be filled through the civil services examinations and other competitive examinations conducted by the Commission so the observations of the UPSC that the posts identified as suitable to be held by the physically handicapped persons particularly those identified for the blind were not required to be filled on the basis of competitive examination conducted by the Commission appeared to be incorrect
565 D Group A and B posts in the category of Administrative Officers are necessarily to be filled as a result of civil services examination held by the UPSC
If some of the identified posts in the Indian Administrative Service and other Allied Services can be filled from amongst the visually handicapped persons there was no reason why they should not be permitted to sit and write the civil services examination
565 E 558