Case: Surinder Kumar Vs. State of Haryana

(a) According to the prosecution, the accusation against the appellant-accused was that he was on visiting terms to the house of Inder Pal (PW-7), husband of Kamlesh Rani (since deceased), who was working at Mullana and keeping his family at Naraingarh, Dist. Ambala, Haryana. The appellant-accused had been visiting Inder Pals house and developed illicit relationship with his wife-Kamlesh Rani. Inder Pal (PW-7) suspected the same between them and stopped his wife from meeting the appellant-accused. When the appellant-accused was stopped to visit their house, he had started threatening and harassing Kamlesh Rani for which she made a complaint to her husband. Inder Pal (PW-7) also visited the shop of the appellant-accused and told him not to visit his house and harass his wife.(b) On the intervening night of 25/26.06.1991, when Inder Pal (PW-7) was away from his house, the appellant-accused went to his house and taunted his wife that she had become a woman of immoral character and called upon her to burn herself to death if she had any sense of shame. Thereafter, the appellant-accused picked up a kerosene can lying in the one room apartment and after pouring the same on the deceased, set her on fire. When the fire developed, the appellant- accused ran away from the room after placing a quilt on the deceased. The neighbours of the deceased took her to the Civil Hospital, Naraingarh where she was examined by Dr. Ashwani Kumar Kashyap, Medical Officer (PW-1). He immediately sent intimation to In-charge Police Station, Naraingarh to the effect that the deceased had been brought to the hospital with 100% burns, and as the condition of the patient was critical she had been referred to P.G.I., Chandigarh. At P.G.I. Chandigarh, she was admitted in the Emergency Ward and Dr.Vipul Sood (PW- 9) examined her and reported a case of 95% burn injuries.(c) On receiving the information, Dalip Rattan (PW-3), Sub- Inspector, P.S. West, Chandigarh applied to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Chandigarh for appointment of an Executive Magistrate to record the statement of Kamlesh Rani. Consequently, Shri P.K. Sharma, Tehsildar-cum-Executive Magistrate (PW-2) was deputed to record her statement. On 26.06.1991, PW-2 recorded her statement and a First Information Report was registered being No. 86/1991 at P.S. Naraingarh at 5.30 p.m. under Section 307 IPC. On the intervening night of 28/29.06.1991, Kamlesh Rani succumbed to the injuries and the case was converted into Section 302 IPC. Thereafter, Ram Niwas (PW-13), Sub Inspector, P.S. Ambala, arrived at P.G.I., Chandigarh and prepared the inquest report. Post mortem was conducted at General Hospital, Sector 16, Chandigarh by Dr. V.K. Chopra and Dr. Ajay Verma (PW-12) on 29.06.1991 at 4.45 p.m. On the same day, the accused was arrested and the case was committed to the Court of Sessions.(d) The Sessions Judge, Ambala, after analyzing the evidence and after giving the benefit of doubt, vide judgment dated 17.12.1992 acquitted the appellant-accused.(e) Challenging the said judgment, the State of Haryana filed an appeal bearing Criminal Appeal No. 241-DBA of 1993 before the Division Bench of the High Court. The High Court, vide judgment dated 19.12.2003, reversed the judgment of the Sessions Judge, Ambala and sentenced the appellant-accused to rigorous imprisonment for life and imposed a fine of Rs.25,000/- and in default of payment of fine, to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year.(f) Aggrieved by the said judgment, the appellant-accused has filed this appeal before this Court.

Court's reasoning:
The trial Court based on the dying declaration Ex. PD alleged to have been made by the deceased-Kamlesh Rani before Shri P.K. Sharma (PW-2), Executive Magistrate, Chandigarh and after finding that it does not inspire confidence in the mind of the Court and being the only evidence appearing against the accused, after giving the benefit of doubt in his favour, acquitted from the charges levelled against him. On the other hand, the High Court relying on the dying declaration holding that it is extremely difficult to reject the dying declaration altogether and finding that in the said dying declaration the deceased had positively stated that she had been immolated by the accused/appellant, set aside the order of acquittal passed by the trial Court and found him guilty under Section 302 IPC and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life. In view of the same, the only question for consideration in this appeal is whether the dying declaration Ex. PD of Kamlesh Rani is reliable, acceptable and based on which conviction isis settled that a valid and well reasoned judgment of the trial Court is seldom set aside unless there was some perversity or not based on correct law. From the materials available, absolutely there was no case to presume that the death of the deceased occurred at the hands of the appellant especially, when her statement was shrouded by suspicious circumstances and contrary to the claim of the prosecution. Particularly, when she was alleged to have 97% burns and being under constant sedatives first at Civil Hospital, Naraingarh and then at PGI, Chandigarh, in such a situation she could not be expected to make a statement at a stretch without asking any questions. Admittedly, the Executive Magistrate, PW-2 did not put any question and recorded her answers.14) Another important aspect relating to failure on the part of prosecution is that on the date of the incident, the deceased had two children aged about six and four years respectively and both of them were present there, admittedly, the I.O. has not enquired them about the genuineness of the incident. Though, there are number of immediate neighbours/co- tenants in the same premises, their statements were not recorded which means that nobody supported the version of the prosecution. Though there is neither rule of law nor of prudence that dying declaration cannot be acted upon without corroboration but the court must be satisfied that the dying declaration is true and voluntary and in that event, there is no impediment in basing conviction on it, without corroboration. It is the duty of the court to scrutinise the dying declaration carefully and must ensure that the declaration is not the result of tutoring, prompting or imagination. Where a dying declaration is suspicious, it should not be acted upon without corroborative evidence. Likewise, where the deceased was unconscious and could never make any declaration the evidence with regard to it is rejected. The dying declaration which suffers from infirmity cannot form the basis of conviction. All these principles have been fully adhered to by the trial Court and rightly acquitted the accused and on wrong assumption the High Court interfered with the order of acquittal.15) It is the consistent stand of the defence from the beginning that the appellant had been falsely implicated, more particularly, at the instance of I.O. Hira Lal (PW-11) who had a previous enmity with him for asking some bribe for running his business of ghee. As rightly pointed out, other witnesses who accompanied the injured Kamlesh Rani did not make any statement involving the appellant in the burning of Kamlesh Rani till 29.06.1991.16) We are satisfied that the dying declaration was totally in conflict with the version of the prosecution as to the time of her burning, relation of the appellant with the deceased, except for the implication part, which was clarified in favour of the appellant by PW-10 Surinder Singh in his cross- examination. In such circumstances, the dying declaration was totally unacceptable, could not be believed as trustworthy, which was rightly not believed so by the trial Court.17) Inasmuch as the acquittal by the trial Court and conviction by the High Court is solely based on the dying declaration, in view of our above discussion, there is no need to traverse the evidence and other factual details. In view of the infirmities pointed above, and contradictions as to the occurrence, failure on the part of the Executive Magistrate in obtaining certificate as to whether Kamlesh Rani had made a voluntary statement and not attested by any doctor and also his statement which is contradictory to that of the deceased Kamlesh Rani and of the fact that at the relevant time she was under the influence of Fortwin and Pethidine injections and was not supposed to be having normal alertness, as rightly observed by the trial Court, we hold that the dying declaration Ex.PD does not inspire confidence in the mind of the Court. Inasmuch as the dying declaration is the only piece of evidence put forward against the accused in the light of our discussion and reasoning, the accused - Surinder Kumar is entitled to the benefit of doubt.