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TMI Blog2024 (12) TMI 1529X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... harge from the charges punishable under Sections 306 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 [For short, 'the IPC'], pending against the appellants before the Court of the Assistant Sessions Judge, Sangamner [Hereinafter referred to as the 'trial court'] in Sessions Case No. 75 of 2015. 3. The facts which lead to the present appeal are as under:- 3.1. On 20th March 2015, the Police Station, Ashvi, District Ahmednagar, received an Accidental Death Report (Khabar) by one Vikas Bhausaheb Sanap who stated that on the same day at about 10 a.m. his sister Jyoti Nagre [Hereinafter referred to as 'the deceased'], aged about 25 years, had committed suicide by hanging herself from the iron pipe situated in the bathroom of her paternal house where she had been residing for the past two years. 3.2. Subsequently, on 25th March 2015, Mrs. Sindhubai Bhausaheb Sanap (Respondent No. 2), mother of the deceased, lodged a complaint at the said police station. According to the complaint, the deceased had been married to Prakash, Appellant No. 1, on 19th November 2009, after which she had given birth to twin sons. After marriage, disputes arose between the deceased and her husband and in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ber 2015. 3.5. Being aggrieved thereby, the appellants filed an application under Section 227 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 [For short, 'Cr.P.C.'] before the trial court, praying to be discharged from the said case. The trial court, by its order dated 24th December 2020, rejected the aforesaid application on the ground that there was sufficient ground to proceed against the appellants. 3.6. Being aggrieved further, the appellants preferred a Criminal Writ Petition before the High Court for setting aside of the aforesaid order of the trial court. The High Court, vide the impugned judgment and order, dismissed the writ petition finding it to be devoid of merit. 3.7. Being aggrieved thereby, this present appeal. 4. This Court while issuing notice on 30th January 2023 had stayed the criminal proceedings bearing Sessions Case No. 75 of 2015 pending before the trial court, until further orders. 5. We have heard Mr. Niteen V. Gaware, learned counsel appearing for the appellants and Mr. Aaditya Aniruddha Pande, learned counsel and Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent-State of Maharashtra. 6. Mr. Gaware, learned counsel, sub ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Bengal v. Indrajit Kundu and Others [(2019) 10 SCC 188 : 2019 INSC 1164], Madan Mohan Singh v. State of Gujarat and Another [(2010) 8 SCC 628 : 2010 INSC 521], Yogesh alias Sachin Jagdish Joshi v. State of Maharashtra [(2008) 10 SCC 394 : 2008 INSC 534] and Sanju @ Sanjay Singh Sengar v. State of M.P. [(2002) 5 SCC 371 : 2002 INSC 250]. He submitted in view of the material placed on record and the authorities cited, the appeal deserves to be allowed and the appellants deserve to be discharged of all charges. 10. Per contra, Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, learned counsel, submitted that no interference is warranted in the concurrent findings of the trial court and the High Court. He submitted that there is sufficient material against the appellants to proceed against them. He further submitted that in view of the allegations levelled against the appellants and the evidence collected by the investigating agency, it is not a fit case to allow this appeal. Mr. Dharmadhikari, therefore, prayed for the dismissal of this appeal. 11. We have carefully considered the rival submissions and perused the material placed on record. 12. The relevant provisions of the IPC that fall for considerat ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... onally aiding another person to do a particular thing. To bring a charge under Section 306 of the IPC, the act of abetment would require the positive act of instigating or intentionally aiding another person to commit suicide. Without such mens rea on the part of the accused person being apparent from the face of the record, a charge under the aforesaid Section cannot be sustained. Abetment also requires an active act, direct or indirect, on the part of the accused person which left the deceased with no other option but to commit suicide. 16. This Court in the case of S.S. Chheena v. Vijay Kumar Mahajan and Another [(2010) 12 SCC 190 : 2010 INSC 506], had an occasion to consider the scope of Section 306 of the IPC and the ingredients which are essential for abetment, as set out in Section 107 of the IPC. It observed as follows: "16. The word "suicide" in itself is nowhere defined in the Penal Code, however its meaning and import is well known and requires no explanation. "Sui" means "self" and "cide" means "killing", thus implying an act of self-killing. In short, a person committing suicide must commit it by himself, irrespective of the means employed by him in achieving his ob ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . The Court opined that there should be intention to provoke, incite or encourage the doing of an act by the latter. Each person's suicidability pattern is different from the other. Each person has his own idea of self-esteem and self-respect. Therefore, it is impossible to lay down any straitjacket formula in dealing with such cases. Each case has to be decided on the basis of its own facts and circumstances. 25. Abetment involves a mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding a person in doing of a thing. Without a positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid in committing suicide, conviction cannot be sustained. The intention of the legislature and the ratio of the cases decided by this Court is clear that in order to convict a person under Section 306 IPC there has to be a clear mens rea to commit the offence. It also requires an active act or direct act which led the deceased to commit suicide seeing no option and that act must have been intended to push the deceased into such a position that he committed suicide." 17. This Court held that abetment involves the mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding a person in do ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Chhattisgarh [(2001) 9 SCC 618 : 2001 INSC 515] laid down the parameters of what would be constituted to be an act of instigation. This Court observed as follows:- "20. Instigation is to goad, urge forward, provoke, incite or encourage to do "an act". To satisfy the requirement of instigation though it is not necessary that actual words must be used to that effect or what constitutes instigation must necessarily and specifically be suggestive of the consequence. Yet a reasonable certainty to incite the consequence must be capable of being spelt out. The present one is not a case where the accused had by his acts or omission or by a continued course of conduct created such circumstances that the deceased was left with no other option except to commit suicide in which case an instigation may have been inferred. A word uttered in the fit of anger or emotion without intending the consequences to actually follow cannot be said to be instigation." 20. It could thus be seen that this Court observed that instigation is to goad, urge forward, provoke, incite or encourage to do "an act". It has been held that in order to satisfy the requirement of instigation though it is not necessary t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tion except to commit suicide, the case may fall within the four corners of Section 306 IPC. If the accused plays an active role in tarnishing the self-esteem and self-respect of the victim, which eventually draws the victim to commit suicide, the accused may be held guilty of abetment of suicide. The question of mens rea on the part of the accused in such cases would be examined with reference to the actual acts and deeds of the accused and if the acts and deeds are only of such nature where the accused intended nothing more than harassment or snap show of anger, a particular case may fall short of the offence of abetment of suicide. However, if the accused kept on irritating or annoying the deceased by words or deeds until the deceased reacted or was provoked, a particular case may be that of abetment of suicide. Such being the matter of delicate analysis of human behaviour, each case is required to be examined on its own facts, while taking note of all the surrounding factors having bearing on the actions and psyche of the accused and the deceased. 16.2. We may also observe that human mind could be affected and could react in myriad ways; and impact of one's action on the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... se of Sanju @ Sanjay Singh Sengar (supra), the appellant before this Court was charged with having abetted the suicide by his brother-in-law (sister's husband). The prosecution story was that there were strained relations between the deceased and his wife who at the material time was staying with the appellant therein. On 25th July, 1998 the deceased went to the appellant to bring back his wife. There was a quarrel between the appellant and the deceased who came back alone. The deceased told his brothers and other acquaintances that the appellant had threatened and abused him by using filthy words. On 27th July, 1998 the deceased was found dead. The deceased left a suicide note which showed his disturbed state of mind but otherwise he blamed the appellant for the suicide. The appellant's petition for quashing of the charge-sheet filed under Section 482 Cr.P.C. was dismissed by the High Court which led him to file an appeal before this Court which came to be allowed. While taking note of the disturbed state of mind of the deceased as was evident from the suicide note and the lack of intention on the part of the accused to abet the commission of suicide by the deceased, the Court hel ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... anspires to the court that a victim committing suicide was hypersensitive to ordinary petulance, discord and differences in domestic life quite common to the society to which the victim belonged and such petulance, discord and differences were not expected to induce a similarly circumstanced individual in a given society to commit suicide, the conscience of the court should not be satisfied for basing a finding that the accused charged for abetting the offence of suicide should be found guilty." 12. Reverting to the facts of the case, both the courts below have erroneously accepted the prosecution story that the suicide by the deceased is the direct result of the quarrel that had taken place on 25-7- 1998 wherein it is alleged that the appellant had used abusive language and had reportedly told the deceased "to go and die". For this, courts relied on a statement of Shashi Bhushan, brother of the deceased, made under Section 161 CrPC when reportedly the deceased, after coming back from the house of the appellant, told him that the appellant had humiliated him and abused him with filthy words. The statement of Shashi Bhushan, recorded under Section 161 CrPC is annexed as Annexure P ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y, if believed, shows that the quarrel between the deceased and the appellant had taken place on 25-7-1998 and if the deceased came back to the house again on 26-7-1998, it cannot be said that the suicide by the deceased was the direct result of the quarrel that had taken place on 25- 7-1998. Viewed from the aforesaid circumstances independently, we are clearly of the view that the ingredients of "abetment" are totally absent in the instant case for an offence under Section 306 IPC. It is in the statement of the wife that the deceased always remained in a drunken condition. It is common knowledge that excessive drinking leads one to debauchery. It clearly appeared, therefore, that the deceased was a victim of his own conduct unconnected with the quarrel that had ensued on 25- 7-1998 where the appellant is stated to have used abusive language. Taking the totality of materials on record and facts and circumstances of the case into consideration, it will lead to the irresistible conclusion that it is the deceased and he alone, and none else, is responsible for his death." (emphasis supplied) 24. It could thus be seen that this Court held that both the courts below had erroneously ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... with regard to the illegal demand and the date of commission of suicide is about two months. As such, there is nothing on record to show that there was a proximate nexus between the commission of suicide and the illegal demand made by the appellant. In Sanju v. State of M.P. [Sanju v. State of M.P., (2002) 5 SCC 371 : 2002 SCC (Cri) 1141] this Court found that there was time gap of 48 hours between the accused telling the deceased "to go and die" and the deceased "committing suicide". As such, this Court held that there was no material to establish that the accused had abetted the suicide committed by the deceased." (emphasis supplied) 26. Thus, this Court has consistently taken the view that instigation or incitement on the part of the accused person is the gravamen of the offence of abetment to suicide. However, it has been clarified on many occasions that in order to link the act of instigation to the act of suicide, the two occurrences must be in close proximity to each other so as to form a nexus or a chain, with the act of suicide by the deceased being a direct result of the act of instigation by the accused person. 27. This Court in the case of Mohit Singhal (supra) reit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... terms of Section 306IPC is not sustainable." (emphasis supplied) 29. Having discussed the law on the subject, we now proceed to consider the facts of the present case in view of the established principles. 30. As per the version of the complainant, the following facts have emerged: i. Appellant No. 1 got married to the deceased on 19th November 2009. ii. Disputes arose thereafter, and the parties started residing separately from 8th August 2013 with the deceased residing at her paternal house with her child. iii. A mahalokadalat was held at the court in Sangamner on 17th February 2015 during which the appellants are alleged to have refused to cohabitate with the deceased or accept her or her child at her matrimonial house or settle the proceedings initiated by the deceased. iv. On 20th March 2015, the deceased committed suicide. 31. In the case of Sanju @ Sanjay Singh Sengar (supra), this Court, under similar circumstances, had quashed the chargesheet under Section 306 of the IPC against the accusedappellant. A factor that had weighed with the Court in the said case was that there was a time gap of 48 hours being the alleged instigation and the commission of suici ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eceased. Further, there is no mention about the incident that had occurred at the mahalokadalat which had put the deceased in a state of depression such that she frequently spoke about committing suicide. These facts are alleged for the first time in the FIR which was lodged five days after the incident. 36. We are of the considered view that the reasoning given by the High Court for refusal to discharge the appellants is completely perfunctory. The High Court observed that there is no allegation about any harassment or cruelty meted out by the appellants to the deceased in the Accidental Death Report, however, held that the allegations in the FIR could not be overlooked and the Accidental Death Report and the statements made in the Accidental Death enquiry would be a matter of trial. The High Court also took note of the disputed date of the mahalokadalat but held that incorrect mentioning of the date of the mahalokadalat in the FIR would not be a ground to discharge the appellants, considering the state of mind of the complainant, the deceased's mother. 37. We further find that the prosecution has failed to prima facie establish that the appellants had any intention to instigate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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