The main legal point established in the judgment is the requirement of intention and continuous course of conduct by the accused to constitute abetment of suicide under Section 306 IPC.

JUDGMENT

Maheshan Nagaprasanna, J. - The petitioners/accused 2, 3 and 4 are before this Court seeking grant of anticipatory bail pertaining to Crime No. 58 of 2022 registered for offences punishable under Sections 306 and 34 of the IPC, it having been turned down by the VIII Additional District & Sessions Judge, Mysore, sitting at Hunsur in Criminal Miscellaneous No. 451 of 2022.

2. Heard Sri. C.H. Jadhav, learned senior counsel appearing for the petitioners and Sri. V.S. Vinayaka, learned High Court Government Pleader appearing for the respondent.

3. The facts in brief are:

A crime is registered in Crime No. 58 of 2022 on 26.02.2022, on a complaint made by one Smt. B.S. Divya, wife of Manjunatha, alleging that her father Swamigowda had committed suicide on account of the petitioners and accused No. 1 hurling abuses in filthy language on 23-02-2022. The father of the complainant dies by consuming tablets which contained poison. He was immediately shifted to the hospital for treatment and despite receiving medical treatment, the father of the complainant died at about 6.05 p.m. on 26-02-2022. On registration of the crime, the petitioners/accused 2, 3 and 4 approached the learned Sessions Judge by filing an application seeking anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. The learned Sessions Judge declined to grant anticipatory bail on the ground that the offences alleged were punishable with imprisonment for 10 years and involvement of the petitioners requires to be assessed. The investigation is pending and if the petitioners are granted anticipatory bail, they may threaten prosecution witnesses and are likely to commit similar offence. It is this rejection that drives the petitioners to this Court in the subject petition.

4. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners would vehemently argue and contend that the incident of hurling abuses even if it is construed to be true has happened on 23.02.2022, the complaint is registered only on 26-02-2022. The allegation is that, the petitioners along with others have verbally abused the father of the complainant uttering "you may go and die" and on frustration, the father of the complainant consumes tablets containing poison. The learned counsel would submit that there is no nexus or proximity to the incident of commission of suicide that is required under Section 306 of the IPC and would submit that the petitioners be granted anticipatory bail failing which, they would be arrested and would be put to grave hardship.

5. On the other hand, learned High Court Government Pleader would seek to sustain the order of rejection of anticipatory bail on the ground that the petitioners are prima facie guilty of the ingredients of offence under Section 306 of the IPC and would seek dismissal of the petition.

6. I have given my anxious consideration to the submissions made by the respective learned counsel and perused the material on record.

7. The commission of suicide by the father of the complainant by consuming tablets containing poison on 26.02.2022, is not in dispute. The exact abuses hurled on the father of the complainant is This is hurled on 23-02-2022, three days prior to the date of commission of suicide. There is no foundation laid in the complaint by narration that the petitioners were present or have instigated the deceased to commit suicide to an extent that there was no other option left to the accused. At this stage, it is appropriate to notice the law laid down by the Apex Court in the case of M. Arjunan v. The State, (2019) 3 SCC 315, wherein the Apex Court has held as follows:

"7. The essential ingredients of the offence under Section 306 IPC are: (i) the abetment; (ii) the intention of the accused to aid or instigate or abet the deceased to commit suicide. The act of the accused, however, insulting the deceased by using abusive language will no, by itself, constitute the abetment of suicide. There should be evidence capable of suggesting that the accused intended by such ac