Death Not Proximate To Alleged Instigation, Ingredients Of Section 107 IPC Absent: Karnataka HC Quashes Case For Abetment Of Suicide

The Karnataka High Court has quashed a case arising out of a crime registered for offences punishable under Section 306 read with Section 34 of the IPC. The Court held that there was no proximity to any instigation for suicide and that the ingredients of Section 107 of the IPC are completely absent in the case.

The Bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna also held that if the ingredients of the offence under Section 306 of IPC are absent, the Court can obliterate the proceedings exercising power under Section 482 of the CrPC.

Senior Advocate Sandesh J. Chouta appeared for the petitioners while Advocate K. P. Yashodha appeared for the prosecution and Advocate SPS Khadri appeared for the complainant.

The 1st Accused is the husband of the 2nd Accused and the Complainant is the brother of the 1st Accused. The son of the Complainant had committed suicide. There were disputes and litigation between the 1st Accused and the Complainant about their father's property. The deceased committed suicide by hanging himself on November 23, 2021, leaving a death note alleging that in the month of October 2021, the accused cornered him near the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Office in Bangalore and threatened him that they will destroy his parents' life and the reason for his taking the extreme step is that incident.

The Court held that the presence of ingredients of Section 107 of the IPC is sine qua non for an offence under Section 306 of the IPC. After referring to a series of judgments of the Apex Court, the High Court held, "The Apex Court in the aforesaid judgments has clearly held that abetment involves a mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding a person in doing a thing. It should be a positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid commission of suicide failing which such cases of conviction cannot be sustained as there should be clear mens rea on the part of the accused to drive the deceased for commission of such act".

The Bench held that there must be mens rea and actus reus for an offence under Section 306 of IPC, as there must be a positive act to instigate in aiding suicide. "Proximate to the death must be a dynamic act, be it direct or indirect. It should be proximate to the occurrence of death and it should be instigation of the kind that it drives a person to commit suicide. Thus, if these ingredients are present in a given case, exercise of jurisdiction under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C., would not be available", the Court held.

The Court found that even if the suicide note is taken into consideration, it only narrates that in the month of October 2021, the petitioners had hurled abuses and registered several proceedings against the complainant and his family members and therefore, the son committed suicide on November 23. "There cannot be any proximity or any instigation which would drive the son of the complainant to commit suicide", the Court held.

The Court accordingly quashed the impugned proceedings.

Cause Title: V. V. Singara Velu v. State of Karnataka & Anr.

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