Petition under Section 482 CrPC challenging conviction under Sections 498-A and 323 IPC for cruelty and hurt of wife and daughters. Court found MLRs on record, testimony of daughter reliable, upheld concurrent findings and dismissed the revision.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH
228 CRR-370-2019(O&M) Date of order: 14.11.2024
Varinder Kumar
…..Petitioner(s)
Vs.
State of Punjab & Another
…..Respondent(s)
CORAM: HON’BLE MS. JUSTICE NIDHI GUPTA Present:Mr. Sidharth Chawla, Ad v ocate for the petitioner. Ms. Rishu Madan, AAG P u njab.
***** Nidhi Gupta, J. Challenge in the present petition is to the judgment and
order date d 10.04.2017 passed by the learned Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Baghapurana, convicting and s e ntencing the petitioner unde r Sections 49 8 -A and awarding 3 years rigoro u s imprisonment and Rs.5,000/ ; and convicti n g under section 323 IPC for 1 y ear rigorous imprisonmentand Rs.1,000/- a s fine; and in default further r igorous imprisonment for on e month and 1 5 days respectively; AND judg m ent of learned Appellate Cour t where by c o nviction of the petitioner h a s been upheld, however, th e sentence ha s been reduced to two years u n der Section 498-A IPC and on e year under Section 323 IPC.
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complainant by the petitioner. It is submitted that learned Courts below have erred in gravely ignoring that no medical whatsoever was conducted of the complainant. The learned Courts below have also erred gravely in believing the statement of Rupali PW4/daughter of the petitioner and complainant, as she is a tutored witness as, at the time of recording of the statement, she was residing with her mother. Learned Courts below have also ignored the fact that after registration of the present case, the matter was compromised whereafter the complainant and the petitioner lived together for a period of eight months. However, after that, father of the complainant took the complainant with him and moved an application to the police. Father of the complainant is interfering in the matrimonial ties of the petitioner. Learned Courts below have erred gravely by ignoring the statement of PW6/Dr. Jasdeep Singh, who examined Rupali Goyal i.e. PW4 and had opined that the injuries caused on Rupali Goyal as well as Twincy Goyal can be self-suffered by rubbing an uneven brick on the skin. It is accordingly prayed that the present petition be allowed, and the impugned judgments be set aside.
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sentence of two years, the petitioner has undergone actual period of 1 month and 13 days and sentence including remission of 1 month and 17 days.
the case file in great detail.
month of August 2010, the accused persons gave severe beatings to the complainant regarding which she informed the local police; whereupon the
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accusedgave in writing that in future they will not maltreat her or torture her for dowry or raise any demand of dowry. Yet, in spite of the undertaking, the accused again gave severe beatings to the complainant upon which she lodged a complaint dated 10.12.2010 to the Senior Superintendent of Police, Moga. In the said complaint, the accused were duly called by the investigating agency and during investigation, they gave an undertaking that in future, it will not be repeated. Even a compromise was executed in the said complaint. As such the complainant withdrew her said application against the accused. However, despite this again on the night of 10.07.2011, the accused persons being the present petitioner, his parents, and his brother, in connivance with each other gave severe beatings to the complainant and dragged her by pulling her from hair and gave beating to her with the intention to kill her and they openly raised alarm that she is unable to give birth to a male child for their family. The accused are also alleged to have made a demand for Rs.5 lakh for the purchase of goods for the shop/business of the petitioner as he had already disposed of the shop goods in fulfillment of his bad habits of drinking and intoxication etc. The accused further said that the death of the complainant is necessary as then they will get the petitioner remarried and will fetch huge amount as dowry from second marriage. Last such incident is of 20.11.2011 when the petitioner beat not just the complainant but also their daughters. As such, the complainant was constrained to file the present complaint on the basis of which the present FIR No.135 dated 06.12.2011 came to be registered under Sections 498-A, 323 and 34 IPC at Police Station Baghapurana, against the aforementioned, four accused persons.
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Baghapurana, three of the four accused persons were convicted as follows:-
| Name of accused |
Offen | ce | Punishment | Fine | In default of payment of fine |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Om Parkash | U/s IPC |
498-A | Two years RI | Rs.2000/- | Fifteen days RI |
| Kamla Devi | U/s IPC |
498-A | Two years RI | Rs.2000/- | Fifteen days RI |
| Varinder Kumar |
U/s IPC U/s 3 |
498-A 23 IPC |
Three years RI One year RI |
Rs.5000/- Rs.1000/- |
One month RI Fifteen days RI |
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the petitioner would beat her. Needless to say, such testimony of the daughter in respect of her father is incriminating. PW4 further deposed that on 20.11.2011, the petitioner beat her and her sister whereupon they were medically examined. Admittedly, MLR of PW4 is on record as Ex.PW6/A; and MLR of second daughter is on record as Ex.PW6/C. Clearly, therefore, the contention of the petitioner that there was no medical evidence to implicate the petitioner, is factually incorrect and contrary to the record.The argument of the petitioner that PW4 was a tutored witness is also liable to be rejected in view of the fact that at the time of her deposition, she would be about 13-14 years old, and was therefore capable of thinking and observing for herself.
| Appellant | Section | R.I. | Fine | In default |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Varinder | 498-A IPC | 2 Years | Rs.5000/- | One month |
| Kumar | RI | |||
| 323 IPC | 1 Year | Rs.1000/- | 15 days RI |
“20. PW-4 Rupali Goyal has categorically deposed that since the age of her discretion, she noticed that her mother Monika Goyal was being harassed and maltreated by her father Varinder Kumar. Her
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father was addicted to drinking alcohol and used to harass her mother so as to bring more dowry. She further deposed that she had been watching these continuously since she was 10/11 years of age. Her father would return from his work, consume liquor and then start oppressing her mother, asking her to bring more money and dowry and when her mother would express her inability to do so, her father would beat her. She also deposed in her cross examination that her grand father is aged about 72 years. They shifted their residence to the shop in Subash Mandi from the last about three years. Volunteered, her grand mother had asked them to shift on the pretext that the house was under repair.
XXX
25. As far as the allegations of causing simple hurt is concerned, the same is clearly made out against the accused Varinder Kumar as PW3 complainant Monika Goyal and PW-4 Rupali Goyal. PW-3 Monika Goyal has made specific allegations against the accused Varinder Kumar by deposing that on 20.11.2011, her daughter Rupali, who was living with her husband gave her a telephonic call and told that accused Varinder Kumar was mercilessly beating her and she further prayed to her for bringing her from her in-laws house. PW-4 Rupali Goyal, daughter of complainant has also deposed that her father being inebriated badly battered her and her sister. Even, PW-6 Dr. Jasdeep Singh, Medical Officer, who has conducted the MLR's of Rupali Goyal and Twincy Goyal, has also proved copy of MR as Ex.PW6/A and Ex.PW6/C and pictorial diagram showing the seats of injuries as Ex.PW6/B and Ex.PW6/D. Thus, the ocular version of complainant PW-3 Monika Goyal and PW-4 Rupali Goyal is duly corroborated with the medical evidence. Therefore, there are cogent and convincing evidence on record to show that accused Varinder Kumar had voluntarily caused simple hurt on the person of PW-4 Rupali Goyal and her sister Twincy Goyal. Hence, after taking into consideration the submissions made by both the sides, I am of the
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considered view that learned trial court has rightly convicted the accused Varinder Kumar u/s 498-A, 323 IPC.”
explain, counter, controvert, or dispute the above said highly incriminating
findings. In view of the above, the present petition is dismissed.
of.
14.11.2024 (Nidhi Gupta) Sunena Judge Whether speaking/reasoned Yes/No Whether reportable Yes/No
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2 issues framed by the court
Whether the concurrent convictions under Sections 498-A and 323 IPC were sustainable despite the absence of medical evidence and allegations that PW4 was tutored.
Whether the daughter's testimony corroborating dowry harassment and beating was reliable.
2 provisions across 1 enactments
Varinder Kumar
State of Punjab
Monika Goyal
Nidhi Gupta
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
