Brief Facts
- The Appellants were the husband and mother-in-law of the deceased who was found dead in her bathroom on 05.11.2014 i.e. after 9 years of her marriage. Both the deceased and her husband were doctors by profession and there was no complaint of harassment during this period. After 21 days of her death, the mother of the deceased gave a complaint to the police station against the Appellants and father-in-law alleging the abetment of suicide by them. The trail Court convicted the husband and mother-in-law for offence under Section 306 and 498-A IPC and the same was upheld by the High Court.
Issue
- Can the conviction be sustained under section 306 IPC without their being any positive act proximate to the time of occurrence on the part of the accused which led or compelled the person to commit suicide?
- Nature of evidence required to be proved to establish abetment under section 306 of IPC.
Held
- The Hon’ble Apex Court allowed the Appeal and acquitted the accused.
Requirements of conviction under section 306 IPC
- To convict a person under Section 306 IPC, there has to be clear mens rea to commit offence. It also requires an active act or direct act which leads deceased to commit suicide finding no other option and the act must be such reflecting intention of the accused to push deceased into such a position that he commits suicide. The prosecution has to establish beyond reasonable doubt that the deceased committed suicide and Appellant No. 1 abetted the commission of suicide of the deceased. In the present case, both the elements are absent.
- This Court has time and again reiterated that before convicting an accused under Section 306 IPC, the Court must scrupulously examine the facts and circumstances of the case and also assess the evidence adduced before it in order to find out whether cruelty and harassment meted out to the victim had left the victim with no other alternative but to put an end to her life. It is also to be borne in mind that in cases of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be proof of direct or indirect acts of incitement to the commission of suicide. Merely on the allegation of harassment without their being any positive action proximate to the time of occurrence on the part of the accused which led or compelled the person to commit suicide, conviction in terms of Section 306 IPC is not sustainable.
No Evidence of abetment found to be present
- In case at hand, not only the said positive action in close proximity to the time of suicide is absent but also there is no evidence for any continuous physical or mental torture meted out to the deceased by the appellants. Throughout their 9 years of marriage, there has never been any complaint or a whisper in this regard either by the deceased or her family members who appeared as prosecution witnesses. Even the deceased herself who was a qualified doctor never made any complaint in this regard. It is really hard to believe that a well-educated and self-reliant lady would take such things lying down for a substantially long period of 9 years.
Relevant Para No.
- 35, 36 & 38