REPORTABLE

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO 891 OF 2001

Milind Bhagwanrao Godse .. Appellant

Versus

State of Maharashtra & Another .. Respondents

J U D G M E N T

Dalveer Bhandari, J.

1. This appeal is directed against the judgment of the High

Court  of  Judicature  of  Bombay,  Bench  at  Aurangabad  in

Criminal  Appeal  No.  187  of  1991  dated  09.03.2001.   The

appellant  (original  accused  no.  1)  and  his  parents  (original

accused nos. 2 and 3) were alleged to have committed offences

punishable  under  sections  498A,  306  and  109  read  with

section  34  of  the  Indian  Penal  Code  (for  short  ‘IPC’).   The

learned IInd  Additional  Sessions  Judge,  Beed  convicted  the

appellant  under  section  498A  IPC  to  suffer  rigorous

imprisonment for one year and to pay a fine of Rs.2,500/-, in

default whereof to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for six

months.  The appellant was also convicted under section 306

IPC to suffer rigorous imprisonment for three years and to pay

a  fine  of  Rs.5,000/-,  in  default  whereof  to  suffer  further

rigorous imprisonment for six months.   Original accused nos.

2  and  3  were,  however,  acquitted  by  the  learned  IInd

Additional Sessions Judge, Beed.

2. Brief facts which are necessary to dispose of the appeal

are recapitulated as under:

The  appellant  was  married  to  the  deceased  Lata  on

9.11.1987.  The deceased was a highly qualified woman.  She

had obtained distinction in Masters of Science (M.Sc.).   She

secured second position in the Marathwada University in the

Diploma  in  Business  Management.   She  had  also  passed

Diploma  in  Higher  Education.   She  was  doing  Bachelor  of

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Education (B.Ed.)  at  the time of commission of  the offence.

She was serving as a Lecturer in Balbhim College at Beed.    

3. The  deceased  Lata  after  marriage  resided  with  the

appellant.  The appellant was living in a joint family with his

parents.  It was not a happy marriage from its very inception.

There was constant taunting leading to mental cruelty to the

deceased by the appellant and his parents.   

4. The  deceased  visited  her  parents  at  Pandharpur  in

January 1988.   She disclosed to her parents that she was

constantly  subjected  to  humiliation.   The  deceased  again

visited her parents in May 1988.  She again disclosed to her

parents that the appellant and his parents used to subject her

to extreme mental cruelty and torture.   She complained that

the appellant asked her not to spend her salary, otherwise he

would divorce her.   

5. She also disclosed to her parents that the appellant used

to tell her that a number of beautiful girls were after him.  She

also complained that the appellant and her father-in-law used

to demand the salary from her and on refusal, both of them

used to frequently ask her to leave the house.  She further

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told  her parents that her mother-in-law dispensed  with the

services  of  maid  servants  and compelled  her  to  do  all  that

domestic work.   

6. She again visited at Pandharpur on third occasion for the

purpose of delivery in July 1988.  She was there from July

1988  to  October  1988.    She  delivered  a  baby  boy.   The

appellant and the deceased took a residential quarter on rent

and stayed there for three weeks.   However, they vacated the

rental  premises  and started  residing  separately  on the  first

floor of the ancestral house.  The deceased was brought back

to the ancestral house against her wishes.    

7. It is an admitted position that the appellant was a junior

lawyer  and  not  settled  in  practice.  He  used  to  constantly

demand money from the deceased.  The appellant used to give

her  threats  of  divorcing  her  even  in  case  of  slight  delay  in

withdrawing  money  from  the  bank  to  be  given  to  the

appellant.  According to the statements of Vidhya P.W.7 and

Vasant P.W.8, sister and father of the deceased respectively,

and  Exh.  46,  it  is  abundantly  clear  that  the  appellant

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constantly used to give threats of divorce.   This led to extreme

mental torture to the deceased.    

8. There was a family function Jawal ceremony (first head-

shaving ceremony of child) in August 1989 at the house of the

appellant.  All guests including the parents and sisters of the

deceased  were  invited  for  the  ceremony.   The  parents  and

sisters of the deceased noticed ill treatment meted out by the

appellant to the deceased on account of shortage of vegetable.

The appellant had humiliated  and insulted  the deceased  in

presence  of  all  guests  and  announced  that  he  would  take

decision to divorce her in that very month.  

9. On 9.10.1989 at about 6:15 p.m., Vasant P.W.8, father of

the  deceased,  received  a  telegram to  the  effect  “Lata  burnt

seriously.  Do not come with Rohit for his insecurity”.   The

telegram  was  signed  by  one  Dodsay.   In  response  to  the

telegram, the parents of the deceased rushed to Beed.  They

reached  Beed  at  2.15  a.m.  on 10.10.1989.    They  saw the

completely burnt dead body of the deceased in the hospital.    

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10. The deceased, because of constant mental torture caused

by  the  appellant,  decided  to  put  an  end  to  her  life.  On

9.10.1989  at  about  2.30  p.m.  at  Dhondipura,  Beed,  the

deceased committed suicide by setting herself on fire.   

11. One  unknown  boy  informed  Vidhya  P.W.7  that  the

deceased had visited the post office at 1 p.m. on 9.10.1989.

Vidhya P.W.7 went to the post office and made enquiry.  It was

found that the deceased herself had sent telegrams Exhs. 35

to 37 to her father Vasant P.W.8, to her sister Vidhya P.W.7

and to her parental uncle at Kolhapur.  Vasant P.W.8 went to

the police station and lodged the first information report Exh.

50  on  10.10.1989  at  4.00  p.m.   On  the  basis  of  the  first

information  report,  Crime  No.  313  of  1989  was  registered

under  sections  498A  and  306  read  with  section  34  of  the

Indian Penal Code.   

12. The Investigating Officer prepared inquest panchnamma

Exh. 16 of the dead body of the deceased on 10.10.1989.   He

prepared  spot  panchnamma  Exh.  29.   The  deceased  had

committed suicide  in the kitchen.  The  Investigating Officer

sent the dead body for autopsy.   The autopsy was performed

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on  the  dead  body  of  the  deceased  on  10.10.1989.    The

deceased had 100% burns.  The charge sheet was submitted

against the appellant and his parents in the Court of Chief

Judicial  Magistrate,  Beed.  The  learned  Chief  Judicial

Magistrate,  Beed  committed  the  original  accused  to  the

Sessions Court, Beed to stand their trial.

13. The prosecution examined 11 witnesses in order to prove

the  guilt  of  the  accused.    Sushma P.W.6  is  the  next-door

neighbour.    Vidhya P.W.7 and Vasant P.W.8 are the sister

and father of the deceased respectively.    

14. The defence of the appellant is that the deceased was a

highly educated woman.  She was over ambitious. She wanted

all the luxuries of life.  However, the appellant was a junior

lawyer and not settled in the practice of law. His income was

too meager to fulfill the dreams of the deceased. The appellant

admitted that he was demanding money from the deceased for

the purpose of their maintenance and not for bad vices.  As

per the appellant, the deceased was frustrated in life because

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her  dreams  were  not  fulfilled  and  ultimately  she  had

committed suicide.   

15. In  the  instant  case,  the  first  information  report  was

lodged by Vasant P.W.8 which fully stands corroborated to the

prosecution  case.   In  his  statement,  he  stated  that  the

appellant was constantly demanding money from the deceased

and  he  also  prohibited  the  deceased  from spending  money

even from her salary and used to threaten her to divorce her.

Vasant  P.W.8  further  stated  in  his  statement  that  the

appellant used to continuously demand money and in case of

delay in payment, he used to scold her.  Vasant P.W.8 stated

that  at  the  time  of  Jawal  ceremony  in  1989,  the  appellant

scolded  the  deceased  because  of  shortage  of  vegetable  and

food in the presence of everyone.    Vasant P.W.8 also stated

about letter Exh.46 and identified the writing of the deceased.

16. Exh. 46 is a letter written by the deceased to her parents

on 9.10.1989, just before she had committed suicide.   The

deceased  wrote  in  the  letter  that  she  was  an  unlucky  girl.

She  thought  that  she  would  have  some  moments  of

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happiness, but it was not possible because of the nature of

her husband (the appellant herein).  She mentioned that on

the last day and night, the appellant had quarrelled with her

and  in  the  morning  the  appellant  cursed  the  father  of  the

deceased.   She  stated  that  the  appellant  had  gone  to  the

extent of saying that since she was so proud of the influence

of her father, she should live with her father in matrimony and

also said many things of that sort.    She specifically stated

that the appellant had harassed her so much that it would not

be possible for her to live with him any more.   She further

stated in the letter that it is one thing of not earning money

and another to frequently dishonour and to give trouble to the

deceased and her son Rohit.    

17. She stated  in the  letter  that  the  appellant  deliberately

twisted the leg of Rohit (his small  son) and broke his bone.

She also stated in the letter that the appellant did so because

he had a brother Arvind who was physically handicapped and

he  wanted  Rohit  to  be  like  Arvind  and  also  because  the

deceased  loved  her  son Rohit  intensely.   She  stated  in  the

letter that the appellant had unusual attraction towards other

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girls,  particularly  towards  deceased’s  sister  Asha,  Sushma,

Sandhya,  sister  of  Charuhas,  wife  of  Anil  Pangrikar.   The

deceased  wrote  in the  letter  that the  appellant,  in  order  to

torture and mentally harass her, used to say that these girls

had good physical figures and looked beautiful.   The deceased

also stated in the letter that the appellant used to say that

there  would  be  a  row  of  girls  now  for  marriage  with  him.

These comments led to severe mental torture.     

18. She requested her parents to take care of her minor son

Rohit and wanted that there should not be a shadow of the

appellant on Rohit.   

19. This letter is indeed very emotional and was written in

extreme  distressing  mental  condition.   This  letter  clearly

demonstrates  that  the  deceased  was  so  much  mentally

tortured by the appellant that she had decided to put an end

to her life.   

20. The accused persons were tried for offences punishable

under  sections  498A  and  306  IPC.   The  learned  IInd

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Additional  Sessions  Judge,  Beed  relied  on  the  evidence  of

Sushma P.W.6 (neighbour), Vidhya P.W.7 (sister) and Vasant

P.W.8  (father)  of  the  deceased  respectively.    After  careful

scrutiny  of  the  entire  evidence,  the  learned  IInd  Additional

Sessions Judge acquitted accused nos. 2 and 3, but convicted

accused no. 1 under section 498A IPC and sentenced him to

suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year and to pay a fine of

Rs.2,500/-, in default of payment to fine to further undergo

rigorous imprisonment for six months.  The appellant was also

convicted under section 306 IPC and was sentenced to three

years’ rigorous imprisonment and was also directed to pay a

fine  of  Rs.5,000/-,  in  default  of  which  to  further  undergo

rigorous imprisonment for six months.   

21. The appellant, aggrieved by the judgment of the learned

IInd  Additional  Sessions  Judge,  Beed,  preferred  an  appeal

before the High Court of Bombay at Aurangabad Bench.   The

High Court correctly analyzed the entire evidence on record

and  came  to  a  clear  finding  that  the  prosecution  has

established  the  guilt  of  the  appellant  beyond  reasonable

doubt.  The appeal filed by the appellant was dismissed and

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the order of conviction and sentence passed by the Learned

IInd  Additional  Sessions  Judge,  Beed  was  confirmed.   The

appellant,  aggrieved  by  the  judgment  of  the  High  Court,

preferred this appeal.

22. The  concurrent  findings  were  found  against  the

appellant,  however,  in  the  interest  of  justice,  we  again

carefully  examined  the  entire  evidence  and  documents  on

record.  The  evidence  of  Sushma  P.W.6  (neighbour  of  the

deceased), Vidhya P.W.7 (sister of the deceased)  and Vasant

P.W.8  (father  of  the  deceased)  clearly  lead  to  the  only

conclusion  that  this  was  a  case  of  extreme  mental  cruelty

which was perpetuated from the point of marriage and lasted

till the deceased had committed suicide.   There cannot be any

iota  of  doubt  that  the  extreme  mental  cruelty  and  torture

compelled  the  deceased  to  put  an  end  to  her  life.   The

appellant  was  wholly  responsible  for  creating  all  the

circumstances which led the deceased to take an extreme step

of putting an end to her life.

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23. Exh. 46, the letter written by the deceased to her parents

on 9.10.1989 immediately before she had committed suicide,

gives  graphic  description  of  the  number  of  instances  of

extreme mental torture, day in and day out.  This letter gives

the  impression  that  the  appellant  was  deriving  sadistic

pleasure in causing extreme mental torture to the deceased.

He  would  leave  no  stone  unturned  to  ensure  that  the

maximum  mental  torture  and  agony  is  caused  to  the

deceased.    We  do  not  find  the  slightest  doubt  that  the

circumstances which have been enumerated in Exh. 46 and

the testimony of P.Ws. 6, 7 and 8 lead to a situation where the

deceased virtually was left with no option except to take an

extreme step of putting an end to her life.   

24. In  our  considered  view,  the  learned  IInd  Additional

Sessions  Judge  and  the  learned  Judge  of  the  High  Court

correctly evaluated the entire evidence on record and arrived

at correct conclusion. No  interference  is  called  for.   The

appeal being devoid of any merit is accordingly dismissed.

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25. Consequently,  the  bail  bond  of  the  appellant  are

cancelled.  The appellant is directed to surrender forthwith to

serve out the remaining sentence.   

……………….…………J. (Dalveer Bhandari)

………………………….J. (Harjit Singh Bedi)

New Delhi, February 12, 2009.

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