Mumbai: Man Sentenced To 7 years For Wife’s Death In 2019 Over 'Dinner Dispute'

The sessions court has sentenced a man to seven years imprisonment for the death of his wife, whom he assaulted in December 2019 after she refused to eat biryani with him. Initially charged with murder, the court later reduced the charge to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

According to the case filed at Bhoiwada police station on December 20, 2019, the accused, Ajay Adsul, and his wife, Savita, residents of the Mahalaxmi Building in Parel, had attended a celebration in their building before returning home. At home, Ajay insisted that Savita eat dinner with him, and when she refused, he assaulted her, banging her head against the wall, rendering her unconscious.

Ajay then took her to KEM hospital, claiming she had fallen in the bathroom. However, due to her multiple injuries, the hospital notified the police. Savita was declared dead on arrival, and Ajay’s mother informed the police that she had been beaten by Ajay, leading to his arrest the following day.

The prosecution examined 15 witnesses to support the charges against Ajay. However, the court acquitted him of murder, noting that Ajay had not used any weapon and had no intention to kill his wife. “It was a sudden quarrel with no intent to cause her death. The incident occurred over a trivial matter, which does not qualify as murder under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code,” the court observed while convicting him of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.