Man, his parents acquitted in dowry death case

A man, accused of burning his wife to death for bringing insufficient dowry, has been acquitted, along with his parents, by a Delhi court due to lack of evidence.

The court also rejected the contention of prosecution witnesses that the woman's husband had previously beaten her and even pushed her off a roof after a quarrel over insufficient dowry.

Additional Sessions Judge A K Kuhar absolved the husband and parents-in-law of the woman of the charges of cruelty, murder and dowry death under the IPC, saying there was nothing on record to show how she suffered burn injuries.

"There is no evidence about this incident, no medical report of the deceased in this regard has been collected during investigation nor there is any police complaint of the incident," the judge said.
 

The court's order came on a complaint lodged by the woman's parents who alleged that their daughter got married in 2010 and was tortured soon after that.

The complaint said that the woman had left her matrimonial home but had reconciled with her husband after a compromise, adding that the accused and his parents again resorted to physical and mental cruelty to her by making monetary demands.

When she refused to fulfil those demands, the accused burnt her using kerosene, it alleged.

The court, while acquitting the accused, also relied on the compromise note signed by the woman and her husband, saying it did not mention cruelty for dowry anywhere.

During the trial, the accused had denied all the allegations levelled against them and claimed that none of them was present at home when the alleged incident took place.