Dowry Death--Distant Relatives of Husband--Persons Outside Definition of Relative Cannot Be Proceeded Against Under Section 80 BNS
A person who does not qualify as a relative of the husband by blood, marriage or adoption, as defined for offences under Sections 304B and 498A IPC (now Sections 80 and 85 BNS), cannot be proceeded against in a case of dowry death or cruelty. A settlement between the families cannot be a ground for closure of proceedings under Section 80 BNS, since dowry death is a non-compoundable offence of grave public consequence. "Soon before death" is not the same as "immediately before death" and must be assessed with pragmatic realism, and the statutory presumption under Section 113B of the Evidence Act operates against the accused unless rebutted by cogent evidence.
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