Ahmedabad: Gujarat High Court has upheld the conviction of a Banaskantha man in a 1985 domestic violence case but spared him the jail term, more than four decades after his wife first levelled the allegations against him.
Mulchand Parmar’s wife had lodged a complaint against him under Section 498 of the IPC, alleging cruelty. Parmar was tried by a magisterial court in Palanpur, which convicted him and sentenced him to two years’ imprisonment in 1992. His appeal was later dismissed by a district court in 2009, following which he approached the high court.
During the hearing of his appeal, Parmar’s lawyer chose not to challenge the conviction on merits and instead sought the benefit of the Probation of Offenders Act. The state govt opposed the plea, arguing against granting him relief from imprisonment.
HC quashed the sentence of rigorous imprisonment and allowed the convict to remain out on personal bond of Rs 10,000 and assurance of good behaviour.
After the hearing, Justice S V Pinto found that the orders of conviction by the two subordinate courts were proper and there was “no perversity, manifest illegality or jurisdictional error”. HC called for a report from the probation officer in March. The report stated that Parmar has family responsibilities and enjoys a satisfactory reputation in society.