In Brief
A husband and mother-in-law were accused of murdering the wife (Poonam) within seven years of marriage through drowning after allegedly harassing her for dowry. The prosecution claimed demands for ₹50,000, appliances, and gold, and that the couple was in conflict. The trial court and High Court acquitted them, finding no injury marks on the body and concluding death was by drowning alone. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, holding that the prosecution failed to prove dowry demands or cruelty—key witnesses were hostile—and that mere suspicion of infidelity does not constitute cruelty. The couple had lived happily for years and had two children.
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