The Supreme Court, while hearing a murder case, ruled that asking for money from the in-laws for the construction of a house or any other work is also dowry and it also comes under the category of crime. Hearing the matter, a bench of Chief Justice NV Ramana, Justice AS Bopanna and Justice Hima Kohli said, “Dowry is a very big word which should be described in a broader sense. This can include any demand from the in-laws, whether it is in relation to property or anything of value. The trial court had convicted the husband and father-in-law of the deceased under sections 304-B of IPC for dowry murder, abetment to suicide and dowry harassment.
According to the information, the accused person was demanding money from his wife i.e. the dying woman to build a house. Due to this there was a lot of tension between the two. Which his family members were unable to give. The woman was constantly harassed about this, due to which she committed suicide. In this case, the Madhya Pradesh High Court held that the demand for money for the construction of the house cannot be treated as dowry.
While dismissing the appeal of mother-in-law in another dowry harassment case, the Supreme Court said, when a woman does not save another woman, then it is a serious crime. The court convicted the mother-in-law and sentenced her to three months’ imprisonment. “It is a very appalling situation when a woman inflicts such cruelty on her own daughter-in-law that she may take the step of suicide,” the bench said.