Kolkata: Nearly a decade after a Dinhata man was convicted of immolating his wife, Calcutta HC on Monday acquitted him, discrediting the victim’s dying declaration over procedural lapses such as not reading it over or explaining it to her.The division bench of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha and Justice Rai Chattopadhyay said a dying declaration can sustain conviction if voluntary and beyond doubt. In this case, however, the bench found suspicious circumstances around the declaration — the sole basis for convicting husband Kader Mia.They questioned why the Dinhata SD Hospital doctor who recorded the dying declaration in on Sept 1, 2011, did not inform police. The bench also noted the doctor could not explain why the victim gave a thumb impression instead of signing, and why the statement was not taken in the presence of family members.The “dying declaration” was crucial as key witnesses, including the victim’s father and brother, had turned hostile, the post-mortem could not confirm homicide, and the probe was flawed. A dying declaration can be recorded by any respectable state officer. A govt hospital doctor qualifies, but this doctor does not appear responsible, having admitted during trial that he neither read over nor explained its contents to the victim, the court held. Kader Mia was sentenced to life by a Dinhata court in 2015. The case began on Sept 1, 2011, when the victim’s father alleged her husband and in-laws set her on fire. She died 10 days later. Her family later retracted allegations, claiming the couple had cordial relations and denying kerosene attack or suicide.
