Indian Penal Code, 1860 (45 of 1860), Section 304-B – “dowry death” – “shall be deemed to have caused her death” – Section 304-B endeavors to also address those situations wherein murders or suicide are masqueraded as accidents – It does not take a pigeonhole approach in categorizing death as homicidal or suicidal or accidental, as was done earlier – The reason for such non categorization is due to the fact that death occurring “otherwise than under normal circumstances” can, in cases, be homicidal or suicidal or accidental – If all the other ingredients of Section 304-B IPC are fulfilled, any death whether caused by burns or by bodily injury or occurring otherwise than under normal circumstances shall, as per the legislative mandate, be called a “dowry death” and the woman's husband or his relative “shall be deemed to have caused her death” unless proved otherwise
Satbir Singh v. State of Haryana – 2021 SCeJ 900
