Granting benefit of doubt, the Bombay High Court has set aside life imprisonment imposed on a 22-year-old farmer on charges of murdering his wife and subjecting her to cruelty for not bringing dowry.
The court ordered the release of Ganesh Deore, a resident of Moshi-Shivar in Deore Taluka of Nashik district, from jail after acquitting him from murder and other charges.
The court also set aside the two years' rigorous imprisonment imposed under section 498 A IPC on the parents of Ganesh, Dattu Deore and Ranjanabai Deore, for harassing their daughter-in-law Suvarna for not meeting their dowry demands.
A bench headed by Justice P V Hardas said the prosecution had failed to prove that it was the accused who had administered poison to Suvarna and had thrown her body in a well. "The accused, in our opinion, would be entitled to be given the benefit of doubt," the Judges said last week.
"In this case, we find there is no evidence on record which would categorically indicate that the deceased had not died due to drowning but had died due to consumption or administration of poison. If that be the case, according to us the commission of suicide by Suvarna cannot be ruled out," said the bench.
"In the present case, the prosecution has not led any evidence whatsoever regarding the fatal dose of the poison which was detected in the viscera of deceased. Thus, there is no evidence on record to even remotely indicate that deceased had died on account of consumption of the poison and not on account of drowning," the Judges further said.
A doctor who conducted the post mortem opined that the deceased did not die on account of drowning. The court, however, said this opinion does not appear to be correct. The doctor has not given any other reason to indicate that the deceased Suvarna died on account of consumption of poison.
The court also noted that in cross-examination the doctor has admitted that it was not possible to determine the quantity of poison consumed by Suvarna and the time taken for the death after consumption of poison.
On July 18, 2007, Suvarna's body was found in a well and a bottle of a insecticide was recovered from the spot.
