AJN 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO.3977 OF 2009 The State of Maharashtra. ... Applicants Vs. Sayyad Rizwan Abbas Sayyad ... Respondent Mr. V.B. Konde-Deshmukh, A.P.P. for the State. CORAM: MRS. RANJANA DESAI & MRS. V.K. TAHILRAMANI, JJ. DATED : 28TH JUNE, 2010. P.C.:- 1. In this appeal, the State of Maharashtra has challenged judgment and order dated 23/1/2009 passed by the Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge at Sewree acquitting the respondents of the offences punishable under Section 498-A and Section 304-B read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (for short, “the IPC”). AJN 2 2. We have heard learned A.P.P. appearing for the State. 3. The deceased was married to accused 1 on 6/5/2006. According to the prosecution, the 1st respondent and other members of his family i.e. respondents 2 to 4 were asking the deceased to bring Rs.50,000/- from her parents as they wanted to buy a jeep. As she could not fulfill their demand, they used to subject her to ill-treatment. She was subjected to physical and mental cruelty. As a sequel to this ill-treatment, on 3/9/2007, accused 1 poured kerosene on the deceased and set her on fire. The deceased received burn injuries. She succumbed to those injuries on 6/9/2007. 4. PW-1 Anis Khatun, the mother of the deceased, PW-2 Sayyed Nisar, the father of the deceased and PW-3 Sayyed Israr the brother of the deceased have deposed about the cruelty allegedly meted out to the deceased. They have also stated that the deceased told them that AJN 3 accused 1 poured kerosene on her and set her on fire. However, PW-1 Anis Khatun has admitted that in her statement dated 3/9/2007, she had told the police that while the deceased was ironing clothes, she tried to stick the ball with the help of a burning candle and, at that time, her saree caught fire and she sustained burn injuries on her back, legs and head. 5. Ex-25 is the dying declaration of the deceased recorded by Special Executive Officer Smt. Leela Mehta. It records the statement of the deceased that she had sustained burn injuries while she was ironing clothes when the burning candle came in contact with petrol which was kept in the bottle. Ex-26 is another dying declaration of the deceased recorded by Special Executive Officer Smt. Lata Batheja. It does not say anything about the ill-treatment and harassment of the deceased by the accused for dowry. In that dying declaration, the deceased has stated that she had set herself on fire by pouring kerosene and she was fully responsible for it. AJN 4 Thus, there is variance between alleged oral dying declarations made by the deceased to her relatives and the dying declarations recorded by Special Executive Officers. PW-1 mother of the deceased is also not consistent about the cause of death. In the circumstances, the accused is entitled to get benefit of doubt. In our opinion, the view taken by the trial court is a reasonably possible view which cannot be disturbed in this appeal against acquittal. Leave refused. Application dismissed. [MRS. RANJANA DESAI, J.] [MRS. V.K. TAHILRAMANI, J.]