The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the conviction and life sentence of a man for murdering his wife and hanging her body to make the death appear to be a suicide [Gour Acharjee v. State of Tripura].

A Bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and KV Viswanathan dismissed the husband’s appeal challenging the judgment of the Gauhati High Court affirming his conviction for murder and marital cruelty.

The Court found that the medical evidence clearly established that the case was one of simulated or homicidal hanging and not suicide.

It noted that the husband was present in the matrimonial home when his wife was found dead and failed to offer any plausible explanation for the injuries sustained by her or the circumstances leading to her death.

The Bench also lamented that despite the wife repeatedly pleading with her parents to save her from dowry-related torture, attempts were  made to patch up the marriage and send her back to her matrimonial home.

“Could the life of young Soma Acharjee have been saved? Did the fear of societal opprobrium result in Soma being thrown to the wolves? These questions will remain hypothetical. Within a few days after her marriage, the deceased, Soma, was subjected to immense torture on account of demand for dowry,” the Bench observed.

The Court said this case should serve as an “eye-opener for many.”

“Soma’s near and dear naively believed that somehow-somehow-the situation will turn for the good. A false sense of optimism engulfed them. Their hopes were betrayed when Soma met with a tragic end at her matrimonial home. Hopefully, the story of her life will be an eye-opener for many,” the Bench added.

The case arose from the death of Soma Acharjee on June 16, 2007, around fifteen months after her marriage to the accused. According to the FIR lodged by her father, Soma was subjected to dowry-related harassment and torture.

The FIR was registered under Sections 498A (cruelty by husband or relatives of husband), 304B (dowry death) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

In 2009, the trial court convicted the husband, mother-in-law, and brother-in-law while acquitting the father-in-law.

The Gauhati High Court later acquitted the mother-in-law and brother-in-law, but upheld the husband’s conviction and life sentence.

The husband then approached the Supreme Court.

Before the Supreme Court, the husband argued that the case was one of suicide.

Rejecting the contention, the top court held that once the prosecution established that the death occurred inside the matrimonial home and the medical evidence ruled out suicide, the burden shifted to the husband to explain the circumstances leading to his wife’s death.

“The appellant did not endeavour to discharge the burden of explaining the injuries sustained by the deceased by offering a plausible explanation. His defence that it was a case of suicide has been belied by the overwhelming medical evidence,” the judgment stated.

The Court further noted that the husband was absconding and directed the Director General of Police, Tripura, to immediately constitute a team to apprehend the convict.

[Read Judgment]