To constitute an offence under Section 306 IPC, the prosecution must establish that a person committed suicide and that such suicide was abetted by the accused, requiring a positive act of abetment on the part of the accused.

JUDGMENT

Ravi Cheemalapati, J. - This Criminal Petition is filed under Sections 437 and 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, [for short, 'Cr.P.C.'] by the petitioner seeking regular bail in Crime No. 80 of 2022 of Singanamala Police Station, Ananthapuramu District registered for the offences punishable under Section 306 IPC.

2. The case of the prosecution, in brief, is that the petitioner has developed illegal intimacy with the deceased and on coming to know the same, on 21.07.2022 the husband of the deceased left her at her paternal house along with her daughter and son and conducted a panchayat with the father of the deceased and being unsuccessful in the said panchayat he returned to his house along with the deceased and children. The deceased being vexed with her life and on 24.07.2022 at about 11 a.m. she went along with her daughter to the Singanamala village water tank and jumped in the tank along with her daughter and both died. Basing on the report of the mother of the deceased, the above crime was registered.

3. Heard Sri O. Manohar Reddy, learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner and Sri Soora Venkata Sainath, learned Special Assistant Public Prosecutor for the respondent-State.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner, in elaboration to what has been stated in the grounds, contended that there is no prima facie of Section 306 IPC attributed against the petitioner, even if the complaint is taken on its face value. He further contended that substantial part of the investigation is already completed, accordingly, prayed to consider bail to the petitioner.

5. On the other hand, the learned Special Assistant Public Prosecutor submitted that though the ingredients of Section 306 IPC may not found place but if the conduct is taken into consideration the inference of Section 306 IPC may be taken for consideration and in support of his contention, he relied upon the judgment in the case of Reena vs. State of NCT of Delhi 2020 Crl. LJ 4890 wherein at para 23 it is held that

'23. The present case is not the one where the petitioner had by her acts or omissions or by a continuous course of conduct created such circumstances that the deceased was left with no option except to commit suicide in which case an instigation may have been inferred.'

6. He further contended that substantial part of the investigation is completed, however, he stated that if the petitioner is enlarged on bail, he may threaten the deceased's family, influence the witnesses and may not co-operate with the investigation. Hence, prayed for dismissal of the Criminal Petition.

7. A perusal of the complaint prima facie discloses that the ingredients of Section 306 IPC are not found. For better appreciation, Section 306 IPC is extracted below:

'306. Abetment of suicide-if any person commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of such suicide, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.'

Thus, the said provision makes it clear that to constitute an offence under Section 306 IPC, the prosecution has to establish:

(i) that a person committed suicide, and

(ii) that such suicide was abetted by the accused.

In other words, an offence under Section 306 would stand only if there is an 'abetment' for commission of the crime.

8. An abetment involved mental process of instigating the person or intentionally aiding the person for doing of a thing. Without a positive act on the part of the accused in aiding or instigating or abetting the deceased to commit suicide, the said person cannot be compelled to face a trial. (Criminal Application (Apl) No. 547 of 2017 the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Nagpur Bench, Nagpur).

'Before holding an accused guilty of an offence under Section 306 of 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 the cruelty and harassment meted out to the victim