In Chinta Devi vs. The State of Bihar (2025), which awaits final hearing, the Supreme Court's Division Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan ordered on January 31, 2025 to list it after six weeks now that original records of the Patna High Court and Trial Court have been received by the Court. The criminal appeal was filed in the Supreme Court on July 23, 2013 and it was registered on May 13, 2014. The appeal arose from the judgement and order of Justices Aditya Kumar Trivedi and Mihir Kumar Jha of the High Court's Division Bench dated August 14, 2012.
On October 4, 2013, the Supreme Court's Division Bench of Justices A. K. Patnai and J.S Khehar condoned the delay in their order and recorded that Nagendra Rai, senior counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that at least the quantum of sentence should be reduced as the petitioner has been convicted for life under Section 304-B. The order reads: "Issue notice limited to the question of sentence under Section 304-B, IPC."
304B of IPC deals with dowry death. It reads:(1) Where the death of a women is caused by any burns or bodily injury or occurs otherwise than under normal circumstances within seven years of her marriage and it is shown that soon before her death she was subjected to cruelty or harassment by her husband or any relative of her husband for, or in connection with, any demand for dowry, such death shall be called "dowry death", and such husband or relative shall be deemed to have caused her death.
(2) Whoever commits dowry death shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than seven years but which may extend to imprisonment for life."
21. Section 304B of the I.P.C. as quoted above has to be necessarily understood in the context of the amended provision of the Evidence Act as incorporated under Section 113B, which reads as follows:-
"113-B. Presumption as to dowry death. - When the question is whether a person has committed the dowry death of a woman and it is shown that soon before her death such woman had been subjected by such person to cruelty or harassment for, or in connection with, any demand for dowry, the Court shall presume
that such person had caused the dowry death."
On September 5, 2014, the Division Bench of Justices Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim Kalifulla and Shiv Kirti Singh passed an order which reads:"We are not inclined to grant bail to the appellant at this stage. Application for bail is rejected. However, liberty is granted to the appellant to renew her bail application after six months." It rejected the bail application on May 13, 2015 as well. But on July 22, 2016, the Division Bench of Justices Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Amitava Roy heard the senior counsel for the appellant and the counsel for the respondent-State of Bihar and passed an order which reads:"For the reasons stated in the application for bail and having regard to the fact that the appellant is of 75 years of age and detained in jail custody for more than 6 years and 8 months, she is directed to be released on bail, subject to the satisfaction of the trial Court." The appellant in question is Chinta Devi, the mother-in-law who was convicted for causing the death of her dauther-in-law Indu Devi on May 22, 1987.
In its 32-page long judgement in Chinta Devi and Kukum Kumari vs. The State of Bihar Criminal Appeal (DB) No.309 of 1990, the High Court's Division Bench set aside the conviction and sentence of the appellants under Section 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code but affirmed the conviction and sentence for offences under Section 304B/34 and Section 498A/34 of the IPC and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act as awarded by the trial court in the impugned judgment, subject to the observations and direction made in the case of appellant Kumkum Kumari. The appeal was heard along with Dilip Kumar Sharma vs. The State of Bihar Criminal Appeal (DB) No. 312 of 1990. In the High Court, the appellants, the residents of Purshottampur, Maniyari, Muzaffarpur were represented by Shailendra Kumar Jha, Amicus Curiae and the respondent was represented by Sashi Bala Verma, APP. The latter had submitted that Indu Devi, the deceased was burnt to death by causing fire after tying her hands and feet. The alibi of the husband, appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma showing himself to be present for his treatment at Jamshedpur, was fit to be rejected. The issue relating to the appellant Kumkum Kumari being either juvenile or minor should have been gone into and enquired into had there been a prayer made by the appellant in the trial court but in absence thereof, now this matter cannot be examined much less reopened by the High Court in view of the prima facie material on record. The judgement was authored by Justice Mihir Kumar Jha.
Both these appeals arose out of the common judgment dated June 12, 1990 in a Sessions Trial whereunder, the 4th Additional Sessions Judge, Muzaffarpur had convicted the three appellants for offence under Section 302/34 of the IPC as well as for offence under Section 304B/34 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act. They ere sentenced to under rigorous imprisonment for life for both offences under Section 302/34 as well as Section 304B/34 of the Indian Penal Code and additionally they have also been convicted for rigorous imprisonment for two years and a fine of Rs. 2,000/- each for the offence under Section 498A/34 of the IPC and in default of fine to undergo rigorous imprisonment for six months. They were further sentenced to undergo one year rigorous imprisonment for offence under Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act as well as a fine of Rs. 1,000/- each and in default thereof to undergo rigorous imprisonment of three months.
The High Court observed: "Law also stands well settled that in order to prove the charge of
Section 304B of the I.P.C., the following essential ingredients have to
be proven:-
(i) the death of a woman should be caused by burns or bodily injury or otherwise than under normal
circumstances,
(ii) such a death should have occurred within seven years of her marriage,
(iii) she must have been subjected to cruelty or harassment by her husband or any relative of her husband,
(iv) such cruelty or harassment should be for, or in connection with, demand for dowry and'
(v) such cruelty or harassment is shown to have been meted out to the women soon before her death."
It relied on the Supreme Court's decision Kunhiabdulla & Anr. vs.
State of Kerala reported in 2004(4)SCC 23 wherein ingredients to prove the charge of
Section 304B of the I.P.C. have been enumerated. The High Court analyzed the evidence on record in the light of these requirements of Section 304B of the I.P.C., to infer that "there is no dearth of material to establish the death of the deceased had taken place on account of injuries caused by burn and the fact that her such burn injuries were clubbed with a mark of tying of her hands and feet by rope would automatically lead to an conclusion that her death was caused in otherwise than under normal circumstances. There is also no dispute that the marriage of the deceased with the appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma had taken place in the year 1984 and the occurrence in question had taken place on 22.5.1987 and thus, within seven years of the marriage. The third and fourth requirement of the deceased being subjected to cruelty or harassment by her husband or relatives of the husband is also fully satisfied in this case, inasmuch as, there are four witnesses on the point of demand of dowry and cruelty being inflicted on the decease".
The High Court concluded: The appellants who are on bail, their bail bonds are cancelled and appellant Chinta Devi and appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma are directed to surrender before the court below for serving out the rest of their sentence. The appellant Kumkum Kumari must appear before the trial court for establishing her claim of being a child/juvenile on the date of occurrence.
Kumkum Kumari, the appellant had raised the specific plea that on the date of occurrence i.e. on May 22, 1987, she was a minor. She had adduced the evidence of Dr. Preeti Bala, the D.W.5 who had examined her as per the direction of the court on February 19, 1988 and had ascertained her age around eighteen years on the date of such examination. But the Trial Court assessed the age of Kumkum Kumari on January 30, 1989 as twenty years despite the claim of the appellant Kumkum Kumari that on January 30, 1989 when her statement was being recorded under Section 313 Cr.P.C., was only 15 years of age, and reject Kumkum Kumari 's claim of being a minor on the ground that the evidence of Dr. Preeti Bala, the D.W.5 was based upon certain radiological reports and records which were not proved by the defence in accordance with Evidence Act.
The High Court observed: "This Court would find such reasons given by the trial court to be only unacceptable, inasmuch as, whenever such question of age relating to minority/juvenility would arise, there has to be necessarily an enquiry by the court itself but from the records it is evident that no such enquiry was conducted by the trial court. At the relevant point of time in the year 1989, when such an issue had arisen in the case of the appellant Kumkum Kumari, the provision of Children Act had to be followed in letter and spirit which also envisages an enquiry for ascertaining and fixing the age. Section 8 of the Bihar Children Act, 1982 which was then in vogue had prescribed for holding an enquiry for recording opinion as with regard to age for declaration of children. Similarly, provision of Section 20 of the 1982 Act also prescribes enquiry by Children's Court regarding delinquent children and Section 24 had laid down no joint trial of a child and a person of not being a child could be held. Thus the mandate of law of an enquiry by the court concerned having been not undergone by the trial court, this Court would find the sentence of Kumkum Kumari to be bad."
The Court further observed: "In this connection, we, while exercising out appellate power keeping in mind the provision of Section 7A of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, would hold that there has to be a fresh enquiry as with regard to the determination of the claim of the appellant Kumkum Kumari of her being a child in terms of the Bihar Children Act, 1982 read with her being a juvenile in terms of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000. Such age of the appellant Kumkum Kumari must be determined children/juvenile in terms of Bihar Children Act, 1982 and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children Act, 2000, her sentence would be determined afresh in keeping with the provision of the Bihar Children Act, 1982. If however, she is not found to be a child on the date of occurrence or her juvenile in terms of the 2000 Act on the date of occurrence, her sentence, as recorded by the trial court in the impugned judgment shall remain undisturbed."
Rajeshwar Prasad Singh (P.W.6) father of Indu Devi set out the prosecution case stated that his daughter Indu Devi was married to the appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma in the year 1984. The informant also stated that his daughter had remained in her Sasural for a period of one year whereafter she had returned to her 'maika' i.e. the house of the informant. He has alleged that the appellant Kumkum Kumari sister of his son-in-law and Chinta Devi mother of his son-in-law had always been taunting and demanding dowry in the form of television, tape recorder, scooter and cash etc. In the year 1986, his daughter had returned back to her Sasural when his son-in-law the appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma after Ruksadi (second marriage) had taken the deceased Indu Devi to his house. The informant alleged that even after the second marriage of his daughter, the demand of dowry by the appellant was continued and when the same was not fulfilled, all the three appellants had kept on threatening his daughter (deceased) that if the goods demanded in dowry were not given, she (Indu Devi) would be done to death whereafter the appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma would solemnize another marriage. The informant had also specifically alleged that some four to five days prior to his recording of Fardbeyan, his daughter was assaulted and on coming to know of this assault on her, when he had gone to the house of the appellant and had requested them to send his daughter back with him to his house (informant's house) as she was his daughter. But his such request was turned down by the appellants who had stated that unless all the goods of dowry such as television, tape recorder, scooter and cash were given to them, the girl (Indu Devi) would not be allowed to go back to her house.
The informant stated that on May 22, 1987 while he was when in village Khabra, in the house of his brother-in-law Ram Japu Ojha, he came to know that his daughter had been done to death after being burnt by her husband appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma, her sister-in-law, Kumkum Kumari and her mother-in-law Chinta Devi and on receipt of such information, he had rushed to the place of his son-in-law appellant Dilip Kumar Sharma and there he could come to know from the neighbours that at about 1.30 PM on the same day i.e. May 22, 1987, his daughter Indu Devi was burnt to death after sprinkling kerosene oil over her body and when the villagers had gone to save her (Indu Devi), they were also prevented from doing so.
The informant had categorically alleged that the death of Indu Devi, the daughter of the informant had taken place on account of concerted overt acts on the part of the three appellants. On the basis of the Fardbeyan of the informant, the father of the victim girl Indu Devi, Maniyari P.S. Case No. 27 of 1987 was recorded for offence under Section 302/34 and 498A of IPC and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act. The police after investigation had submitted the charge-sheet whereafter the case being triable by court of sessions was committed by an order dated November 17, 1987. The trial court, framed charges for offence under Section 302/34 of IPC, Section 304/34 of the IPC and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, had conducted the trial which, ended with the impugned judgment of conviction and sentence of all the appellants.
Supreme Court is likely to hear the appeal of Chinta Devi, the convict
who is out on bail since July 2016 in March 2025. The current fate of Dilip Kumar Sharma, the husband and Kumkum Kumari, the sister-in-law who were also complicit in the death of Indu Devi for dowry is not known.
