Sheoraj Singh Ahlawat & Ors vs State Of U.P.& Anr

3. Appellant No.3-Naveen Ahlawat and respondent no.2-Smt. Renu Ahlawat tied the matrimonial knot on 28th September, 1998. Appellant No.3 was, at that time, serving in Indian Army as a Captain. The couple were blessed with a daughter three years after marriage. According to the wife-Smt. Renu Ahlawat, the addition to the family did not make much of a difference in terms of cordiality of her relations with her husband Captain Naveen Ahlawat and appellants No.1 and 2 who happen to be her parents in-law as they kept harassing her for dowry ever since the marriage was solemnised. These demands, according to her, continued even after her father had paid a sum of rupees four lakhs to the appellants. Physical and mental torture of respondent No.2-Renu Ahlawat, it is alleged, also did not stop even after the said payment, for the sake of a luxury car as an additional item of dowry. Respondent No.2-Smt. Renu Ahlawat’s further case is that on 10th December, 2006 she was forced into a car by the appellants who then abandoned her at a deserted place on a lonely road near Sihi village at around 8 p.m. and threatened to kill her if she returned to her matrimonial home. When Jitendar Singh and Brijvir Singh two villagers saw respondent No.2-Renu Ahlawat weeping by the side of the road, besides the car they tried to confront the appellants whereupon appellant No.3-Naveen is alleged to have pulled out a revolver and threatened to shoot them.

4. A complaint about the incident was lodged on 13th December, 2006, by respondent No.2-Renu Ahlawat with SSP, Bulandshahar in which she gave details regarding her marriage with the appellant No.3-Naveen Ahlawat and the mental and physical harassment faced by her at their hands as also repeated demands for dowry. She also accused her sisters-in-law, Neena and Meghna for indulging in such harassment along with the appellants.

5. The jurisdictional police started investigation into the incident, in the course whereof complainant-Smt. Renu Ahlawat came to know about her husband-Naveen Ahlawat having obtained an ex parte decree for divorce against her. A copy of the said judgment and decree was collected by Smt. Renu Ahlawat on 28th November, 2006 and steps taken to have the same set aside. The decree was eventually set aside by the Court concerned.

6. The police, in the meantime, filed a closure report to which Renu Ahlawat filed a protest petition. It was on the basis of the protest petition that Judicial Magistrate, Bulandshahar, took cognizance of an offence punishable under Section 498-A of the I.P.C. against the appellants as also against Neena and Meghna sisters-in-law of the complainant. By an order dated 13th February, 2009 Neena and Meghna were discharged by the High Court of Allahabad on the ground that no specific allegations were made against them. The appellants then filed an application for discharge under Section 239 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1973 before learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bulandshahar in which they alleged that the accusations of dowry harassment levelled against them were false and so was the incident alleged to have taken place on 10th December, 2006 on which date both appellants No.1 and his son appellant No.3 claimed to be otherwise engaged which according to them belied Renu Ahlawat’s story of their having abandoned her on a deserted road as alleged by her. The application for discharge was, however, dismissed by the Court by order dated 9th March, 2010 holding that the grounds urged for discharge could be considered only after evidence was adduced in the case and that appellant No.2 could not be discharged on the basis of minor contradictions in the depositions recorded in the course of the investigation.

7. Aggrieved by the order passed by the Trial Court the appellants preferred Criminal Revision No.1241 of 2010 which was dismissed by the High Court on the ground that the same did not make out a case for quashing of the proceedings against the appellants. The present appeal assails the correctness of the said order of dismissal.

9. On behalf of respondent No.2, it was per contra argued that her husband had filed a divorce petition against her in the Family Court, Meerut showing respondent No.2 to be residing with her parents at 327, Prabhat Nagar, Meerut, whereas she was actually residing with the appellants along with her daughter at No. 9, Tigris Road, Delhi Cantt, Delhi. It was further argued that appellant No.3 had obtained an ex parte decree order of divorce by fraudulent means and by forging signatures of respondent No.2, acknowledging receipt of the notice which she had never received from the concerned Court. This was conclusively established by the fact that the ex parte decree dated 31st May, 2006 had been eventually set aside by the Court in terms of order dated 28th July, 2007. Allegations regarding physical torture of respondent No.2 and her being abandoned on the road on the date of incident in question as also the allegation about dowry harassment were factually correct and made out a clear case for prosecuting the appellants. Appellant No.3 had, according to the counsel for the respondent, married one Aditi on 30th October, 2006. It was also argued that letter referred to by appellant No.3 as also letter dated 2nd November, 2006 allegedly written by respondent No.2 were forgeries committed by the appellants. The trial Court was, in the light of the available material, justified in refusing to discharge the accused persons and that the grounds for discharge set up by the appellants could be examined only after the case had gone through full-fledged trial. Reliance was placed upon a decision of this Court in Union of India v. Prafulla Kumar Samala and Anr. (1979) 3 SCC 5.

18. In the result, this appeal fails and is hereby dismissed. Keeping, however, in view the facts and circumstances of the case, we direct that appellant Nos. 1 and 2 shall stand exempted from personal appearance before the trial Court except when the trial Court considers it necessary to direct their presence. The said appellants shall, however, make sure that they are duly represented by a counsel on all dates of hearing and that they cooperate with the progress of the case failing which the trial Court shall be free to direct their personal appearance. No costs.