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High Court of Karnataka
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HULUVADI G RAMESH
State – by Gnanabharathi Police
Versus
H S Keshaamurthy
Criminal Appeal 1131 of 2007
Decided on : 21-09-2010
INDIAN PENAL CODE, 1860 - Sections 498-A, 306 & 107: [Huluvadi G. Ramesh, J] Suicide by married woman - Held, What is also noticed is, the accused being bad tempered, must have expressed something against the deceased regarding she often going to movies or her attitude. Those expressions show that the harassment meted out to the deceased appears to be in the form of mental harassment. The deceased must have been frustrated by the attitude of the accused and annoyed by the frequent expressions of the accused. The normal human conduct would be, if a woman is more assertive, she would withstand the harassment or hurling of abuses without taking a decision to come out of family life either by taking a divorce or going away. The evidence of some of the witnesses, though they are related, point out towards the abuse by the accused to the deceased. The background in which the accused is brought up also shows that he was rude in his behaviour and the expressions made by him would not necessarily mean to abuse the deceased so as to abet her to commit suicide. The conduct of the deceased at times - That she frequently went to watch movies and she was going for walk in the night, for which the accused would have objected, though not suspecting her fidelity, but because of security or other reason and, he would have expressed doubt regarding her character in a casual way. Might be the deceased being hyper sensitive and having felt annoyed, after having lead twenty years of married life with the accused and also having known about the temperamental incompatibility between them, decided to commit suicide. Added to that, she had also lost her mangala sutra either because of somebody’s act or some other reason. Being afraid of the consequences i.e., when the accused used to abused her in the usual course, and if he came to know about the loss of the gold mangala sutra, he would take her to task, must have decided to take the extreme step. In the circumstances, it cannot be exactly said that the deceased committed suicide due to the harassment meted out to her by the accused. Even it is not a case of dowry harassment that is, when the accused has lead marital life with the deceased for twenty years and she begot a child almost aged about 19 years, necessarily might be due to misunderstanding between the spouses, due to temperamental incompatibility between the two, she must have committed suicide and it cannot be exactly said that the accused has committed the offence punishable under Sections 498-A and 306 of IPC. The words uttered in a fit of anger or emotion without any intention, do not amount to abetment. It cannot be said that the accused has committed the offence under Sections 498-A and 306 of IPC.
Appeal is by the State assailing the order of the Fast Track Court V, Bangalore in SC 209/2004 acquitting the accused of the offences under S.498A and 306, IPC. The Jnanabharathi Police had charge sheeted the accused on the strength of the complaint filed by PW 1 – Giriyappa, father of the deceased – Vasantha Kumari. According to the complaint, the accused had married the deceased about twenty years back and both of them were residing at Nagarbhavi II Stage, Bangalore. After marriage, the accused was subjecting the deceased to mental cruelty and harassed her by suspecting her fidelity and the conduct of the accused drove the deceased to commit suicide as such, the accused had committed the offence punishable under S.498A, IPC. Being unable to tolerate the harassment, the deceased committed suicide on 6.12.2003 by hanging at the house where she and her husband were residing as such, the accused committed the offence punishable under S.306, IPC. The accused, at the relevant point of time, was working as an Executive Engineer in KPTCL, Bangalore. According to the complainant, the accused was suspecting the fidelity of his wife and also ill-treating her mentally. It is also stated, the complainant decided to advise the accused suitably to avoid complications but the ill-treatment meted out to the deceased went on unabated. The accused had also ill-advised his son not to be cordial with his mother. Despite the same, the complainant had advised his daughter suitably and to carry on day to day work, undisturbed. According to PW 1, on 6.12.2003 around 10.00 a.m. his daughter Vasantha Kumari had called him over phone as such, he along with his relative Krishna went to his daughter’s house and at that time, the accused and his grand son Kiran were in the house. After some time, the accused and his grandson went out of the house and the deceased told him that the accused was suspecting her and ill-treating her and she was sorrowful. However, PW 1 and his relative – Krishna pacified her. However, on the same day evening, on coming to know that his daughter was not keeping well, PW 1 along with his son came to his daughter’s house. There he found the dead body of his daughter outside the house. When he questioned his grandson, he told that his mother had committed suicide by hanging herself in the bathroom of the house when there was nobody in the house, around 2.00 p.m. When he (son) returned to the house, he found that his mother had hanged in herself in the bathroom and, with the help of neighbors, he united the rope. It appears, the accused who came there on coming to know of the incident, immediately shifted the deceased to the hospital and there, she was declared dead. According to the complainant, since the deceased was harassed mentally, being unable to tolerate the ill-treatment, she committed suicide. On account of the harassment by way of suspecting the fidelity of the deceased and also abuse by the accused, the deceased committed suicide as such, it is alleged that the accused is responsible for the death of the deceased. On the strength of the complaint filed at Ex.P1, case came to be registered and FIR was sent. Also, at the time of inquest, one letter said to have been written by the deceased Vasantha Kumari, is said to be seized and marked as MO 1, narrating the details and the reason/cause for her committing suicide. The police conducted mahazar of the scene of offence, marked as Ex.P3, the investigating officer who has recorded the statement of the complainant and several other witnesses, also recorded the voluntary statement of the accused. After conducting the inquest, recording the statement of the brother of the deceased and some other witnesses, after preparing the sketch of the scene of offence with the help of an engineer, after completion of investigation, and in the meanwhile, obtaining the handwriting of the deceased and also the report of the handwriting expert, the investigating officer filed the char
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