Abetment of suicide under Section 306 IPC requires direct incitement or actions leading to suicide; mere allegations of harassment are insufficient.

JUDGMENT :

Karamjit Singh, J.

The instant petition has been filed by petitioner/accused seeking quashing of FIR No.172 dated 14.10.2015 Annexure P-1 registered under Section 306 IPC at Police Station Model Town, Rajound, District Kaithal.

2. FIR in this case was registered on the basis of statement made by Manoj Kumar, resident of Karoda, Police Station Pundri, District Kaithal wherein he is stated that his elder brother Joginder Singh was working as a class IV employee in Animal Husbandry Department and was posted in veterinary hospital in village Rohera. On 14.10.2015, he received telephonic message that his brother Joginder Singh committed suicide by hanging from a fan in a room of aforesaid hospital. On receiving the message, he went to veterinary hospital Rohera and on reaching there, he found that dead body of his brother Joginder Singh was lying on a floor inside the room. He checked the dead body which resulted into recovery of suicide note from the pocket of trouser of the deceased. He read the suicide note wherein it was written that on that day Balwan Singh (accused) who was posted as a Veterinary Life Stock Development Assistant (in short ‘VLDA’) in government veterinary hospital, Rohera had insulted the deceased and called him dishonest and uttered bad words and also gave a slap on his face. The deceased could not bear the said insult and due to said reason, he was compelled to end his life. The complainant also produced the said suicide note before the police. Consequently, FIR Annexure P-1 was registered against petitioner/accused Balwan Singh under Section 306 IPC.

3. The counsel for the petitioner has inter alia contended that the petitioner was posted as VLDA, in veterinary hospital, Rohera. The deceased was working under the petitioner. There were allegations that the deceased was charging extra money from the general public to provide treatment to cattle. In this regard, inhabitants of the village gave affidavits and two of the said affidavits are Annexure P-2 and Annexure P-3. The deceased also used to issue medical prescriptions without having any authority to do so. The copies of such unauthorized medical prescriptions issued by the deceased are Annexure P-6 to Annexure P-10. The matter was also reported to his senior namely petitioner Balwan Singh prior to the alleged occurrence. On this, petitioner reprimanded and further advised the deceased not to demand any bribe from the villagers who come to the hospital for treatment of their cattle. The counsel for the petitioner has further argued that earlier the deceased was transferred to some other place as is evident from Annexure P-12 but he made request and was retransferred to veterinary hospital Rohera as is apparent from Annexure P-13. The counsel for the petitioner has further argued that the deceased remained working with the petitioner for last 12 years. In case, the deceased was ill-treated by the petitioner then there was no occasion for the deceased to get himself re-transferred to veterinary hospital, Rohera. The counsel for the petitioner has further contended that even if the allegations made in the FIR and alleged suicide note are taken to be correct on their face value, there is nothing to suggest that the petitioner has committed any offence much less offence under Section 306 IPC. The counsel for the petitioner while placing reliance on the decision of Hon’ble Supreme Court in Gangula Mohan Reddy Vs. State of Andhra Pradesh, 2010 (1) SCC 750, has submitted that offence under Section 306 IPC requires an active act or direct act which led the deceased to commit suicide seeing no option and this must have been intended to push the deceased into such a position that he committed suicide. The counsel for the petitioner has also placed reliance upon Madan Mohan Singh Vs. State of Gujarat and another, 2010 (4) RCR (Criminal) 207 wherein it was held that in so far as Section 306 IPC is concerned, merely because a person had a grudge against his senio