Dying declaration sends mom-in-law to jail for life

AGRA: A court in Mainpuri Wednesday sentenced a 60-year-old woman to life imprisonment for killing her daughter-in-law by setting her on fire over additional dowry demands in 2022.

District court judge Pankaj Kumar Agrawal convicted Sabina Begum based on evidence and witness testimonies, including Asma Begum's dying declaration.District govt counsel Pushpendra Chauhan said the case dates back to Dec 10, 2022, when the victim's father, Rashid Khan, a resident of Hussainpur, Elau, filed a complaint at Kotwali city police station. "Asma, then 25, married Alamgir, then 30, a resident of Mahmood Nagar in Mainpuri on May 29, 2022.

However, soon after the marriage, Alamgir, his mother Sabina and his father Gulab Khan began harassing Asma for more dowry.

Despite attempts at reconciliation, Asma was set ablaze by her in-laws on Dec 10, 2022," he said, adding she succumbed to her injuries at Saifai Hospital, but not before giving a declaration in which she implicated her husband and mother-in-law.All three accused were sent to jail and a chargesheet was later filed against Alamgir and his mother. While Gulab Khan was initially named, his name was later dropped from the case due to lack of evidence. Alamgir reportedly died in jail a few months into the trial due to illness.