VISHNUDEO NARAYAN, J. - (1.) THIS appeal at the instance of the appellants named above is directed against the impugned judgment and order dated 13.6.1998 and 18.6.1998 respectively passed in S.T. No. 448 of 1998 by Sri Mishri Lal Choudhary, 5th Additional Sessions Judge, Hazaribagh whereby and whereunder they were found guilty for the offence punishable under Section 304 -B/34 of the Indian Penal Code for causing the dowry death of Kalamati Devi, the lawfully wedded wife of appellant Ajit Rana and they were convicted and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for ten years each. However, co -accused Gita Devi was found not guilty and she was accordingly acquitted.
(2.) THE prosecution case has arisen on the basis of the fardbeyan (Ext. 2) of informant PW 7 Deoki Rana, the father of Kalamati Devi, the deceased of this case recorded on 29.5.1998 at 18.15 hours at Bari of the house of the appellants situate in village Chutiaro by PW 8 SI S.N. Prasad of Muffasil P.S. Hazaribagh about the occurrence which is said to have taken place on that very day in the said Bari of the house of the appellants for causing the dowry death of Kalamati. The case against the appellants was instituted by drawing of a formal FIR (Ext. 3) on that very day at 22.15 hours which was received in the Court on 31.5.1998 empowered to take cognizance. The prosecution case, in brief, is that Kalamati Devi, aged about 18 years, is the daughter of the informant and her marriage was solemnized with appellant Ajit Rana in the month of April 1997. On the occasion of her marriage, the informant had delivered Rs. 16,000/ - to appellant Ajit Rana, but in spite of that, there were ill will and differences between the couple. It is alleged that PW 5 Bhuneshwar Mistry of the village of the appellant came to the house of the informant at village Baheri and informed him that dead -body of Kalamati has been recovered from the well situate in the Bari of the house of the appellant and on this information the informant in company of his brother PW 3 Triveni Rana and his co -villagers went there and found her dead -body lying on a cot under a tree near the well in the said Bari and on query he was informed by appellants Budhni Devi and Dwarika Mistry that Kalamati Devi had accidentally fell in the well as a result of which she had died. It is further alleged that he went to the well aforesaid and found the well -curb completely covered by the logs of wood and there was only a small passage left in the well -curb for taking water by bucket and the rope of the Lattha used for taking water from the said well was also found cut and the rear portion of the said Lattha was also found damaged which gave reasonable suspicion to him that all the appellants, who are the father -in -law, mother -in -law and husband respectively of the deceased along with acquitted accused Gita Devi who is the sister of appellant Ajit Rana have committed the murder of Kalamati Devi and they have thrown her dead - body in the well. It is also alleged that appellant Ajit Rana was found missing from his house from the early morning of that day.
(3.) THE appellants have pleaded not guilty to the charge levelled against them and they claim themselves to be innocent and to have committed no offence and that they have been falsely implicated in this case on mere suspicion.;