PATNA, India, June 29 -- Patna High Court issued the following order on June 4:

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.23266 of 2026.

Arising Out of PS. Case No.-448 Year-2025 Thana- RAXAUL District- East Champaran.

1. Sayera Khatoon @ Sayara Khatoon @ Sayara W/o Akbar Miyan Resident of Village - Hardiya, P.S. - Raxaul, Dist. - East Champaran.

2. Akbar Mian @ Akbar Miyan Son of Gaazi Miyan @ Gaji Miyan Resident of Village - Hardiya, P.S. - Raxaul, Dist. - East Champaran.

3. Rahmat Miyan @ Sahmat Hawari @ Rahmat Hawari Son of Akbar Mian @ Akbar Miyan Resident of Village - Hardiya, P.S. - Raxaul, Dist. - East Champaran. Petitioner/s Versus The State of Bihar Opposite Party/s.

Appearance:

For the Petitioner/s: Ms. Harsha Saswat, Adv.

For the Opposite Party/s: Md. Shakir Ahmad, APP.

CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HARISH KUMAR. ORAL ORDER. 04-06-2026.

1. Heard learned Advocate for the petitioners and learned Advocate for the State through virtual mode.

2. The petitioners apprehend their arrest in connection with Raxaul P.S. Case No.448 of 2025 registered for the offences punishable under Sections 80 and 3(5) of the BNS, 2023.

3. Based upon the written report, the prosecution alleges that the daughter of the informant had solemnized a love marriage with the son of petitioner nos. 1 and 2. Out of the said wedlock, the couple was blessed with two children, aged about four years and two-and-a-half years, respectively. It is further alleged that soon after the marriage, the daughter was subjected to demands for dowry, cruelty, and harassment. The prosecution further alleges that she was ultimately strangulated to death and hanged from a ceiling fan to portray the occurrence as a suicide.

4. Learned Advocate for the petitioners contended that the deceased and her husband had been living a conjugal happy married life separately from their family members. It is contended that on account of some trivial dispute, the deceased committed suicide in a heat of rage. The petitioners are the mother-in-law, father-in-law, and brother-in-law of the deceased. During the investigation, no cogent material has surfaced to indicate their involvement in dowry demands or cruelty. Both the post-mortem report and the FSL report suggest suicidal hanging, and no external ante-mortem injury was found on the body. Because the marriage was a love marriage, it is submitted there was no occasion for any demand of dowry.

5. On the other hand, the learned Advocate for the State vehemently opposed the bail application, submitting that witnesses supported the prosecution case regarding dowry demands and torture.

6. Having considered the submissions and taking note of the fact that the petitioners are the parents-in-law and brother-in-law who have been living separately from the deceased and her husband, the court noted that the postmortem report clearly suggests suicide by hanging. There were no marks of external injuries, and the petitioners have fair antecedents. The Court ordered that the petitioners be released on bail in the event of their arrest or surrender within four weeks on furnishing a bail bond of Rs. 20,000/- each with two sureties. This is subject to conditions under Section 482(2) of the BNSS, including that one bailor shall be a close family member.

rohit/-

(Harish Kumar, J).

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.