The Jharkhand High Court recently affirmed that denying proper medical treatment to a wife to enforce dowry demands is considered cruelty under Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Justice Ambuj Nath presided over the case and upheld the conviction of Sanjay Kumar Rai, who was found guilty of cruelty towards his wife as per Section 498A IPC.
The case involved three criminal revision pleas. The first plea was filed by Neelam Devi, the victim, who was later represented by her father, Ram Kripal Singh, following her death. The second plea was filed by Sanjay Kumar Rai, the husband of Neelam Devi, challenging his conviction under Section 498A of the IPC. The third plea was brought by Neelam Devi’s father, challenging the acquittal of her brother-in-law, Bhageshwar Roy, under the same section.
The prosecution’s case began with a written complaint from Neelam Devi. She alleged that after her marriage to Sanjay Kumar Rai in June 2006, her in-laws began to torture her in her husband’s absence. When she informed her husband about the abuse, he demanded a car as dowry and later forced her to leave the matrimonial home. Subsequently, she was coerced into signing blank papers.
Neelam Devi consistently reported being tortured over dowry demands. After being diagnosed with cancer, her husband allegedly refused to arrange for her treatment, stating that her father had not provided enough dowry to cover the medical expenses.
The court reviewed the evidence, including witness testimonies and the case facts. It found that general and vague statements were made about the torture inflicted by the in-laws. Since there was no concrete evidence of physical injury or specific instances of torture, the court upheld the magistrate’s decision to acquit the in-laws.
Regarding the acquittal of Bhageshwar Roy, the court observed that the allegations against him were also vague, leading to the confirmation of his acquittal.
However, when it came to the charge against Sanjay Kumar Rai for not providing medical aid to his wife to enforce dowry demands, the court agreed with the findings of both the Trial Court and the Appellate Court. It ruled that his actions constituted cruelty under Section 498A of the IPC, and thus, his conviction was upheld, and his revision plea was dismissed.
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