The acquittal of the husband in a dowry death case cannot be a ground for absolving the in-laws, the Supreme Court has ruled. The apex court said this while sentencing a dowry victim's father-in-law to seven years imprisonment, setting aside his acquittal by the Rajasthan High Court.
The HC had concluded that since the trial court had acquitted the victim's husband, other accused, including her in-laws could not be convicted. The apex court termed the premise as erroneous and affirmed the trial court's verdict holding the victim's in-laws guilty of dowry death. “The High Court committed serious illegality by acquitting the father-in-law on the premise that husband had been acquitted,” a bench comprising Justices G P Mathur and G S Singhvi said.
The apex court judges said that the High Court had ignored the most important factor that the deceased suffered injuries in a dwelling unit.