In Brief
A woman (Urmila) died from severe burn injuries within four years of her marriage after complaints of dowry harassment by her in-laws. The trial court acquitted the mother-in-law (appellant) citing conflicting dying declarations. The High Court convicted her under Section 304-B IPC (dowry death), relying on a third dying declaration made when the deceased was free from in-law influence. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction, finding the third declaration reliable when assessed independently and the presumption under Section 113-B satisfied. However, the Court modified the sentence from life imprisonment to seven years, holding that extreme punishment under Section 304-B should be rare.
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