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SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
Vikram Nath, Satish Chandra Sharma, JJ.
Rohini Sudarshan Gangurde – Appellant
Versus
The State of Maharashtra & Anr. – Respondents
Criminal Appeal No. 2877 of 2024 (@ SLP (Crl.) No.13246 of 2023)
Decided on : 10-07-2024
Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Section 306 read with Section 107 [Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 – Sections 108 read with Section 45] – Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 227 Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 – Section 250] – Abetment of suicide – Rejection of discharge application of Appellant – There is no proximate link between marital dispute in marriage of deceased with appellant and commission of suicide – Accused must have encouraged the person to commit suicide or engaged in conspiracy with others to encourage the person to commit suicide or acted (or failed to act) intentionally to aid the person to commit suicide – Appellant has not played any active role or any positive or direct act to instigate or aid deceased in committing suicide – There is no allegation against appellant of suggesting deceased to commit suicide at any time prior to commission of suicide by her husband – None of three essentials of Section 107 read with Section 306 IPC are existing – Prosecution has failed to collect any evidence to substantiate allegations against appellant – Impugned order of High Court set aside and application for discharge allowed – Appeal allowed. (Paras 8, 13, 14 and 15)
Facts of the case:
Vide impugned order High Court has dismissed Criminal Revision Application filed by Appellant against order of Trial Court dated 24.02.2022. Trial Court had rejected application of Appellant for her discharge from offence under Section 306 of Indian Penal Code, 1860.
Findings of Court:
Neither statement of complainant nor that of colleagues of deceased as recorded by Investigating Officer during investigation suggest any kind of instigation by appellant to abet commission of suicide.
Result : Appeal allowed.
JUDGMENT :
Vikram Nath, J.
Leave granted.
2. This appeal is preferred by the accused Appellant-Rohini Sudarshan Gangurde challenging the impugned order of Bombay High Court dated 05.09.2023 in Criminal Revision Application No. 410 of 2022. By this order the High Court has dismissed the Revision Application filed by the Appellant against the order of the Trial Court dated 24.02.2022. The Trial Court had rejected the discharge application of Appellant for her discharge from the offence under Section 306 of Indian Penal Code, 1860[In short, IPC].
3. Facts of the case are summarised as follows:
3.1 Appellant is the wife of deceased Sudarshan Gangurde, who hanged himself to death on 17.02.2020 in his house. The appellant wife is accused of abetment to suicide and was thus charged under Section 306 of IPC. The complaint was filed by Smt. Usha Gangurde, mother of deceased alleging physical and mental harassment by the accused.
3.2 Appellant Rohini and deceased Sudarshan had a love affair which turned into marriage on 09.03.2015 against the will of family members of both of them. The couple started residing separately at Shingnapur in Kolhapur. From the wedlock one male child Shoren was born on 27.05.2017. The couple had jointly purchased a Row House flat at Shingnapur where they were residing when the incident took place. The parents and family members of the deceased were residing at Mumbai. The deceased was serving in CPR Hospital at Kolhapur as Social Service Superintendent. He was on visiting terms with his parents.
3.3 On 17.02.2020, the deceased aged 38 years, was found in hanging position by the accused wife in the balcony of common house they were residing at in Shingnapur. The neighbors informed the police. No suicide note was found. The post mortem report found no signs of injuries on the body of deceased. The cause of death is noted to be due to hanging.
3.4 On the same day, First Information Report bearing No. 74/2020 was lodged by the mother of deceased- Smt. Usha Gangurde against the appellant under Section 306 of IPC, alleging that her son committed suicide due to harassment and beating by his wife Rohini on account of demand of money and for transfer of the dwelling house at Shingapur in her name. She further stated that when her son visited her, he also told her that his wife was abusing and beating him, insisting on him not to visit his parents and not to give them money. When her husband-Ashok Gangurde stayed at the house of deceased in May 2019, he told her that accused Rohni was beating and abusing her son for money and transfer of house in her name. Due to these disputes, Rohini was residing separately from the deceased in her parents house at Sangali. The complainant further stated that accused was sending vulgar messages on mobile phone of the deceased. All this allegedly resulted in commission of suicide by the deceased.
3.5 Apart from the complainant, statement of one of the colleagues of the deceased Ujwala Sawant was also recorded. She referred to an incident dated 17.10.2019 when the appellant visited deceased and created a ruckus in the office by rushing towards him on being abusive. The incidence was corroborated by another colleague Mr. Bajirao Apte.
3.6 On the other hand, as per the statement of Appellant Rohini, her husband was addicted to liquor and there were quarrels between them on that ground. They tried to patch up as the deceased had assured to give up his habit to consume liquor. On this condition they resumed co-habitation.
However, the deceased could not overcome the habit and started to drink more. It is argued by the counsel for Appellant that the deceased may have committed suicide out of frustration.
3.7 On 04.11.2020, the police filed the Chargesheet against appellant under section 306 of IPC. As per the Charge-sheet, the offence took place on 17.02.2020 between 7.00 to 7.30 AM at the dwelling house in Shinganapur, where the accused harassed the deceased on account of money and for transfer of hou
Abetment of suicide – There must be proximate link between alleged instigation and commission of suicide by victim.
Mere disapproval of a relationship does not constitute abetment of suicide under Section 306 IPC; there must be direct or indirect instigation with a proximate link to the act.
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The opposition to a relationship, without further evidence, may not constitute abetment of suicide under Section 306 of the IPC and Section 3(2)(5A) of the Atrocities Act.
Abetment of suicide – There must be direct or indirect acts of incitement to commission of suicide.
The main legal point established in the judgment is the requirement for evidence of instigation, conspiracy, or intentional aid on the part of the accused to establish the offence of abetment under S....
(1) Abetment of suicide – Mere harassment, by itself, is not sufficient to find accused guilty of abetting suicide – Element of mens rea cannot simply be presumed or inferred; it must be evident and ....
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