important point
More active role which can be described as instigating or aiding the doing of a thing is required before a person can be said to be abetting the commission of offence under Section 306.

judgment

Dr. Arijit Pasayat, J. —

1. Challenge in this appeal is to the order passed by a learned Single Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court upholding appellant’s conviction for offence punishable under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short ‘IPC’) and sentence of 7 years RI.

2. Background facts in a nutshell are as follows :

First Information Report lodged by Shri Rajiv Lochan Jain (PW4) was to the effect that Jyoti (hereinafter referred to as the ‘deceased’) had written in her letter that her husband Sohan Raj Sharma the accused-appellant was torturing him for sex in many different ways, mostly pervert and tired of the same, she had poisoned her children, and had consumed poison herself. The FIR is further to the effect that appellant-Sohan Raj Sharma, because of the circumstances, had compelled Jyoti to consume poison. The first endorsement of the Investigating Officer ASI Rohtash Singh (PW10) on the statement Ex.PL of Shri Rajiv Lochan Jain (PW4) is Ex.PL/1 and it is to the effect that on his reaching B.K. Hospital Faridabad alongwith other police officials, Shri Rajiv Lochan Jain had handed him over one letter (Ex.PX ) of eight pages which was taken into possession of the police vide memo Ex.PM and from the statement of Shri Rajiv Lochan Jain and the letter produced by him, the allegations of commission of offences punishable under Section 306 IPC on the part of the Sohan Raj Sharma were made out. Statement Ex. PL/1, the statement Ex. PL alongwith endorsement Ex.PL/1 was sent to the police station for registration of the case on which formal FIR was recorded. During investigation, the incriminating evidence in the form of medical evidence regarding death of Jyoti, Pinki and Gudiya having been caused due to consumption of poison surfaced. Further the report regarding letter (Ex.PX) and other oral evidence of the witnesses regarding circumstances connected with the occurrence were collected. Accused Sohan Raj Sharma was put on trial for offence punishable u/s 306 IPC, he was challaned by the police and was committed to the court of Sessions for trial by the Illaqa Magistrate.

3. Prosecution examined 11 witnesses and exhibited several documents. Most vital one is purported suicide note Ex.PX. Appellant took the stand during examination under Section 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (in for ‘Code’) that she was never married to the deceased officially. It also alleged that she was a lesbian and in proof of this stand, one Anita Parmar was examined as DW1. The Trial Court found the contents of Ex.PX satisfied ingredients of Section 306 IPC. Accordingly, the appellant was found guilty and convicted and sentenced as aforesaid.

4. In appeal before the High Court, the stand taken before the Trial Court that ingredients of Section 306 IPC have not been fulfilled was reiterated. Stand of the prosecution was that the ingredients have been established.

5. The High Court found that Ex.PX was sufficient to show as to what was the reason for deceased committing suicide.

6. Learned counsel for the appellant submitted that letter Ex.PX in no way establishes that the appellant had abeted the suicide. As a matter of fact, the fact that the deceased took the lives of two innocent children and then committed suicide without any doubt establishes that she was mentally unsound. The letter at the most describes the accused as a sexual pervert, but his behaviour, if any, cannot be taken to be an act of abeting the suicide. It is pointed out that in Ex Px she has clearly stated that she wanted to take appellants’ life.

7. Learned counsel for the respondents-State on the other hand supported the judgment of the courts below.

Section 306 IPC deals with abetment of suicide. The said provision reads as follows :

“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