High Court Division
The State v Md. Kamrul Islam
Death Reference 82/2019 · Reference rejected; death sentence commuted to life · Decided 14 September 2026
The Nari-o-Shishu Nirjatan Daman Tribunal 1, Sirajganj convicted the accused under section 11(Ka) of the Nari-o-Shishu Nirjatan Daman Ain, 2000 of killing his wife for dowry and sentenced him to death. The death reference was heard with his criminal appeal and jail appeal. The High Court Division found that the couple had been married for about 15 years, the witnesses did not say to whom the further demand of Taka 3,00,000 was made, and the alleged demand did not fall within the definition of dowry in section 2(Yeo), so the section 11(Ka) conviction could not stand. However, medical evidence proved homicidal strangulation in the accused's bedroom, he failed to explain the death, his suicide and alibi defences failed, and he absconded for eight months. His conviction was converted to murder under section 302 of the Penal Code. Treating his long custody and over seven years in the death cell as mitigating, the Court rejected the reference, dismissed the appeal and commuted the sentence to life imprisonment.
- Whether the prosecution proved a demand for dowry so as to sustain a conviction for dowry killing under section 11(Ka) of the Nari-o-Shishu Nirjatan Daman Ain, 2000.
- Whether the husband, in whose house his wife was found dead from homicidal strangulation, could be convicted of murder under section 302 of the Penal Code when he failed to explain her death.
- Whether the death sentence should be confirmed or commuted.
- To prove an offence under section 11(Ka) of the Ain, 2000 the prosecution must prove that the accused demanded dowry and that the victim was killed for its non-payment; without proof of such a demand within section 2(Yeo), the conviction cannot be sustained.
- Where a wife is found dead in her husband's house, the husband has a duty to explain her unnatural death.
- A plea of alibi must be proved by the defence that takes it, and a defence of suicide was shown to be false by medical evidence of antemortem homicidal strangulation.
- Where the death was proved to be homicidal, the husband failed to explain it and his conduct in absconding was incompatible with innocence, the conviction under section 11(Ka) could be converted to one for murder under section 302 of the Penal Code.
- Long custody and more than seven years in the condemned cell were mitigating circumstances justifying commutation of the death sentence to imprisonment for life, with the benefit of section 35A of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Since the victim wife was found dead in the house of the condemned-prisoner, it was his duty, being the husband of the deceased, to explain her unnatural death.
