(1) IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY, AURANGABAD BENCH, AT AURANGABAD. Criminal Application No. 4529 of 2010 The State of Maharashtra, Through Police Station, Mudkhed, .. Applicant Taluka : Mudkhed, District : Nanded. (Original complainant) versus 1. Sultana @ Jarina w/o. Rafique Shah Pathan, Age : 25 years, Occupation : Household, R/o. Warwant, Taluka : Kandhar, District : Nanded. 2. Sayyad Mujeeb s/o. Sayyad Yaqoob, Age : 24 years, Occupation : Driver, R/o. Manatha, Taluka : Hadgaon, District : Nanded. 3. Shaikh Lateef s/o. Shaikh Faridsab, Age : 60 years, Occupation : Agriculture, R/o. Khujada, Taluka : Mudkhed, District : Nanded. 4. Shaikh Rasheed s/o. Shaikh Lateef, Age : 30 years, Occupation : Agriculture, R/o. Khujada, Taluka : Mudkhed, District : Nanded. (2) 5. Shaikh Shadul s/o. Shaikh Lateef, Age : 23 years, Occupation : Agriculture, R/o. Khujada, Taluka : Mudkhed, District : Nanded. 6. Shaikh Sayyad s/o. Shaikh Kamalsab, Age : 40 years, Occupation : Business, R/o. Nivgha, Taluka : Mudkhed, .. Respondents District : Nanded. (Original accused) ....................... Smt. Y.M. Kshirsagar, Advocate, for the applicant. Mr. P.R. Adkine, Advocate, for respondent nos.1 to 6. ........................ CORAM : SHRIHARI P. DAVARE, J. DATE : 5TH JULY 2011 COURT'S ORDER : 1. Heard learned Counsel for the parties. 2. This is an application preferred by the applicant / State seeking leave to file appeal challenging the judgment and order dated 9th July 2010, rendered by the learned Extra Joint (3) Ad hoc Additional Sessions Judge, Nanded, in Sessions Case No. 19/2009, in Sessions Case No. 19/2009, thereby acquitting the respondents (original accused) for the offence punishable under Section 306 read with Section 34 of IPC. 3. I have perused the impugned judgment and order dated 9th July 2010. 4. In the present case, it is alleged that deceased Rafiq had married with accused no.1 Sultana about 8 to 10 years back, and three issues were born out of the said wedlock. Accused nos.2 to 6 are inlaws of deceased Rafiq. Deceased Rafiq was serving as a Teacher at Thane, however, he came to Nanded prior to two months for attending a marriage. It is also alleged that deceased Rafiq committed suicide on 17-5-2007 by hanging himself to Neem tree and accused nos.1 to 6 allegedly abetted to the said committal of suicide as they disclosed sexual relations of his wife with one Sayyad Mujib, which deceased Rafiq could not tolerate, and also due to harassment and illtreatment at the hands of the inlaws on account of sale of house which deceased Rafiq was opposing. 5. The prosecution examined as many as nine witnesses to substantiate the charges levelled against the accused. (4) 6. However, learned trial court has rightly observed that there was delay of 1 month and 10 days in lodging the F.I.R. and the prosecution has not given satisfactory explanation therefor. In the said context, Adv. Mr. P.R. Adkine, for the respondents (original accused) has placed reliance on the judgment of Hon. Apex Court in the case of Thulia Kali Vs. The State of T.N., reported at AIR 1973 SC 501, and particularly, following observations :- " First information report in a criminal case is an extremely vital and valuable piece of evidence for the purpose of corroborating the oral evidence adduced at the trial. The importance of the report can hardly be overestimated from the standpoint of the accused. The object of insisting upon prompt lodging of the report to the police in respect of commission of an offence is to obtain early information regarding the circumstances in which the crime was committed, the names of the actual culprits and the part played by them as well as the names of eye witnesses present at the scene of occurrence. Delay in lodging the first information report quite often results in embellishment which is a creature of afterthought. On account of delay, the report not only gets bereft of the advantage of spontaneity, danger creeps in of the introduction of coloured version, exaggerated (5) account or concocted story as a result of deliberation and consultation. It is, therefore, essential that the delay in the lodging of the first information report should be satisfactorily explained. When an occurrence is not reported for more than 20 hours after the occurrence even though the police station is only two miles from the placed occurrence it is unsafe to base conviction upon the evidence. " Apparently, the observations made by the learned trial court in respect of the said delay are not out of place and same cannot be faulted with and the said unexplained delay hampers the case of the prosecution. 7. Moreover, apparently, there is no evidence on record to show that on the day of the incident, any quarrel had taken place between deceased Rafiq, on the one hand, and his wife and inlaws, on the other hand, nor any event had taken place which could not be tolerated by the victim, and therefore, he committed suicide. As regards alleged incident of 12-4-2007, of assaulting victim, no report has been filed in that respect, and therefore, learned trial court has rightly observed that the prosecution has failed to establish nexus between committal of suicide by Rafiq and illtreatment and harassment given by the accused. (6) 8. Thus, apparently, prosecution has failed to prove and establish ingredients of Section 107 of IPC, and hence, learned trial court has rightly acquitted the accused and no interference is called for in appellate jurisdiction. 9. In the circumstances, after scrutinizing and appreciating evidence on record, the view adopted by the learned trial court, while acquitting the accused, is a possible view, and the same does not appear to be perverse, and reasoning given therefor, apparently, cannot be faulted with, and hence, present application bears no substance and same deserves to be rejected. 10. In the result, present Criminal Application, which is sans merits, stands dismissed, and leave to file appeal is refused. ( SHRIHARI P. DAVARE ) JUDGE ......................... bgp/ka4529