Man kills pregnant wife over taunt, court cuts life term, cites grave provocation
The Madhya Pradesh High Court has reduced the life sentence of a man convicted of killing his wife to seven years' rigorous imprisonment, ruling that
The Madhya Pradesh High Court has reduced the life sentence of a man convicted of killing his wife to seven years' rigorous imprisonment, ruling that the crime was committed in a moment of "grave and sudden provocation" rather than as a pre-planned murder. The Jabalpur bench of Justice Vivek Agrawal and Justice Avanindra Kumar Singh passed the order while hearing the criminal appeal of Shiva, a resident of Chaurai in Chhindwara district. Read Full Story The trial court had convicted him under Section 304 Part I of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
WIFE WAS SEVEN MONTHS PREGNANT According to the prosecution, the incident took place on a night in July 2021 when Shiva and his wife Kiran were at Kharra Ghat on the Kulbehri river. During an argument, Kiran allegedly told him, "I can have a thousand husbands like you." The prosecution said Shiva, enraged by the remark, picked up a stone lying nearby and attacked her, causing fatal injuries. Kiran was seven months pregnant at the time. After the incident, Shiva himself informed the police and the victim's family over the phone.
COURT MODIFIES CONVICTION While examining the evidence, the High Court observed that if Shiva had intended to commit a premeditated murder, he would not have immediately informed the police and his wife's relatives about the incident. The bench held that the alleged remarks made by the deceased caused the accused to lose self-control, leading to the assault in a fit of rage. The court concluded that the case fell under "culpable homicide not amounting to murder" rather than murder. Referring to previous Supreme Court rulings on "grave and sudden provocation", the High Court modified the trial court's judgment and altered the conviction from Section 304 Part I to Section 304 Part II of the Indian Penal Code.
The court sentenced Shiva to seven years' rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 1,000, partly allowing his appeal. Ends With inputs from Dhiraj Shah.
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