High Court overturns the decision of the Sessions Court, stops the life imprisonment sentence of the man who burnt his wife

The woman’s daughter’s statement under Section 164 was recorded a month after the incident.

Highlights

There was no ink mark on the thumb in the postmortem report. After reaching the sessions court, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. There was also a gap of nine hours between the statement and death.

Naiduniya, Jabalpur (MP High Court). The High Court’s double bench of Justice Vivek Agrawal and Justice Avnindra Kumar Singh found the dying declaration doubtful and cancelled the life imprisonment sentence passed by the Sessions Court. The High Court made it clear in its order that a doubtful dying declaration cannot be the basis for punishment.

Only 9 hours gap between statement and death

The High Court found that the dying declaration had the thumb impression of the deceased. During the postmortem report, there was no ink on the thumb of the deceased. There was only a gap of nine hours between the declaration and death. The case was presented in the High Court on behalf of the appellant Sagar resident Pappu alias Makhan Sahu and his friend Ballu alias Balram.

He was accused of burning his wife alive

Pappu was accused of burning his wife alive along with his friend Ballu. The police registered a case and after the case reached the sessions court, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

What was the prosecution’s allegation

According to the prosecution, Pappu had asked his wife for money to drink alcohol. When his wife refused, he, along with his friend Ballu, poured kerosene on her and set her on fire. The woman was admitted to the hospital with 90 percent burn injuries.

What was argued in the appeal

In the appeal filed in the High Court challenging the decision of the Sessions Court, it was argued that the woman’s thumb impression was recorded in the dying declaration. But the reality was that the woman’s hands were completely burnt. According to the postmortem report, there was no ink mark on the woman’s hand.

The High Court considered the dying statement as suspicious

The woman’s daughter’s statement under Section 164 was recorded a month after the incident. During this time, the daughter was with her in-laws. However, the High Court considered the dying declaration as doubtful and passed an order to acquit the appellants.