The Bombay High Court has upheld a lower court verdict awarding life sentence to a 35-year-old who murdered his wife by setting her on fire as she refused to bring money from her parents' home.
Justices V K Tahilramani and B P Colabawalla found Ashok Jagtap, a resident of Shirala in Sangli district, guilty of killing his wife and confirmed the life term handed to him by a court in Islampur.
As per prosecution, Jagtap used to ill-treat his wife Sangita after drinking liquor and ask her to bring money from her parents. The couple have two children who used to stay with Sangita's mother.
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On March 13, 2007, Jagtap came home in an inebriated condition and asked Sangita to bring money from her parents. However, when she refused to oblige, he threw her on a bed, doused her with kerosene and set her on fire as a result of which she suffered burn injuries.
She was rushed to government hospital in Shirala and later shifted to civil hospital in Sangli where she succumbed to her injuries after four days.
The HC judges opined that evidence of Akkatai, mother of the deceased, and dying declaration of the victim established that Jagtap had set her on fire.
"It would be totally incorrect to submit that there was no motive in this case. Looking to the injuries suffered by the deceased Sangita, we are of the view that by pouring kerosene on her, the appellant intended to cause bodily injury to her, sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause her death," they said in their verdict delivered on May 5.
"The conviction and sentence of the appellant under section 302 of IPC (murder) is maintained and the appeal is dismissed," they said.
