LAW FOR ALL

Section 304-B and Section 498-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)= whether the conviction of Kulwant Singh (appellant No.1), his father Gurtehal Singh (appellant no.2) and his mother Harminder Kaur (appellant no.3) for offences punishable under Section 304-B and Section 498-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) ought to be sustained. In our opinion, there is sufficient evidence on record to sustain their conviction.= We have given considerable thought to this submission but find that the law prescribes a minimum of seven years imprisonment for an offence under Section 304-B of the IPC. There is no provision for reducing the sentence for any reason whatsoever nor has any exception being carved out in law. Consequently, we cannot accept this plea. We must not lose sight of the fact that even though Gurtehal Singh and Harminder Kaur are now aged, they were responsible for the death of Rachhpal Kaur through aluminium phosphide poisoning. Rachhpal Kaur was a young lady when she died and we can only guess the trauma that her unnatural death would have caused to her parents. Sympathizing with an accused person or a convict does not entitle to us to ignore the feelings of the victim or the immediate family of the victim. Conclusion: 42. There is no merit in the appeal. It is accordingly dismissed.