High Court
Facts
cran4040.22--1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY BENCH AT AURANGABADCRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 4040 OF 2022 1.Dhananjay s/o Sharadrao Tawar2.Pankaj @ Shekhar s/o Sharadrao Tawar ...Applicants Versus1.The State of Maharashtra 2.In-charge Police Inspector Police Station Chikalthana3.Suwarna w/o Babasaheb Ghuge ...Respondents …..Mr. P. M. Nagargoje, advocate for the applicants Mr. A. R. Kale, A.P.P. for respondent Nos.1 and 2Mr. Shyam C. Arora, advocate for respondent No. 3. …..AND CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 4346 OF 2022 Aparna w/o Nitin Aghao ...Applicant Versus1.The State of Maharashtra 3.Suvarna w/o Babasaheb Ghuge ...Respondents …..Mr. R.U.Gavhane, advocate for the applicant Mr. A. R. Kale, A.P.P. for respondent No.1 Mr. Shyam C. Arora, advocate for respondent No.2. …..AND CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 550 OF 2023 Swapnil Karbhari Ghuge...Applicant
Legal Reasoning
cran4040.22--5- authorities:- i)Judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme court in the case of MohitSinghal and Anr. vs. The State of Uttarakhand and others,(Criminal Appeal No. 3578 of 2023, decided on 1.12.2023, inwhich, in the facts of the said case, the Hon’ble SupremeCourt in para 11 has held that the offence punishable undersection 306 of I.P.C. was not made out against the appellants.Therefore, the continuation of their prosecution will be nothingbut an abuse of the process of the law. ii)Judgment of Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of ArnabManoranjan Goswami vs. State of Maharashtra andothers, reported in (2021) 2 SCC 427, in which the Hon’bleSupreme Court held that the ingredients for abetment tosuicide must be proved by direct or indirect acts of instigationor incitement of suicide by the accused proximate to the timeof occurrence, and the requisite mens rea to abet the suicide,in the facts and circumstances of the case. In the said case, it is further held that the F.I.R. and suicidenote though prima facie revealed harassment, there was noproof of instigation to commit suicide. Thus, held, prima face itcannot be said that the appellant was guilty of having abettedthe suicide within meaning of Section 306 of I.P.C.Furthermore, charge under Section 306 of I.P.C. is notsustainable on the allegation of harassment without therebeing any positive action proximate to the time of occurrenceon the part of the accused, which led or compelled the personto commit suicide, which was prima facie absent in presentcase. 5.Learned advocates for the applicants lastly prayed that there is cran4040.22--6- no such evidence against these applicants to proceed further with thetrial and therefore, they have prayed for quashing of the report. 6.Learned A.P.P. for the State and learned advocate forrespondent No.2 informant strongly opposed the applications andsubmitted that the suicide note written by deceased BabasahebGhuge, is the strong evidence against the applicants showing theirinvolvement in the crime. The applicants are arrested in seriouscrime. Therefore, their names are mentioned in the report. LearnedA.P.P. and learned advocate for the informant pointed out thestatements of witnesses which shows instigation. It is lastly prayedto reject the applications. 7.Perused the charge sheet and particularly report, statements ofwitnesses and suicide note. No doubt, the names of the applicantsare mentioned in the suicide note and report. They may not havepaid some amounts which were due to the husband of the informant.But it is a civil liability. It is not revealed either from the statements ofwitnesses that any of the applicants have directly or indirectlyinstigated the husband of the informant to commit suicide. 8.As far as applicant Aparna is concerned, it is alleged that sheinstigated quarrel between the informant and her husband. However,there is no such specific incident to show that she instigated thehusband of the informant to commit suicide. Mere raising quarrel on cran4040.22--7- the part of the applicant Aparna does not establish ingredients ofSection 107 of the I.P.C. to infer instigation to commit suicide on herpart. 9.The essential ingredients of Section 107 of I.P.C. are notestablished from entire charge sheet. There is no material againstthese applicants. We are of the view that if the applicants aredirected to face the trial, it would certainly be an abuse of process ofthe Court. The criminal applications therefore deserve to be allowed.10.In view of the above reasons, the criminal applications areallowed. The crime No. 427 of 2022 registered with Chikalthanapolice Station, district Aurangabad for the offences punishable underSections 306 and 34 of I.P.C., the consequential proceedings arisingout the said crime are quashed and set aside. (SANJAY A. DESHMUKH, J.) (R. G. AVACHAT, J.) rlj/
Arguments
cran4040.22--2- Versus1.The State of Maharashtra 3.Suvarna w/o Babasaheb Ghuge ...Respondents …..Mr. Sachin S. Shinde, advocate for the applicant Mr. A. R. Kale, A.P.P. for respondent No.1 Mr. Shyam C. Arora, advocate for respondent No.2. …..AND CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 573 OF 2023 Dnyaneshwar Dagadu Jadhav...Applicant Versus1.The State of Maharashtra 3.Suvarna w/o Babasaheb Ghuge ...Respondents …..Mr. Datta S. Kale, advocate for the applicant Mr. A. R. Kale, A.P.P. for respondent No.1 Mr. Shyam C. Arora, advocate for respondent No.2. …..AND CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 4101 OF 2023 Shrikant Bhanudasrao Ghule...Applicant Versus1.The State of Maharashtra 3.Suvarna w/o Babasaheb Ghuge ...Respondents …..Mr. Aniruddha B.Ghule Patil, advocate for the applicant Mr. A. R. Kale, A.P.P. for respondent No.1 Mr. Shyam C. Arora, advocate for respondent No.2. ….. cran4040.22--3- CORAM : R. G. AVACHAT AND SANJAY A. DESHMUKH, JJ.Date of Reserving the Order :20.12.2023Date of pronouncing the Order :08.03.2024 O R D E R (PER SANJAY A. DESHMUKH, J.):- 1.The applicants are charge-sheeted vide C.R. No. 427 of 2022for the offences punishable under Sections 306 r.w. 34 of the IndianPenal Code (for short “I.P.C.”) registered with Chikalthana policestation district Aurangabad. 2.It is averred in the report by the informant that her husbandwas a Civil Engineer and a Contractor. He was having threeHighwas and one poclain machine to be used for excavating thesand. For that he took loan. He gave those vehicles on rent basis tothese applicants. They were not paying that amount. Once theinformant had asked him as to why he is worrying, at that time, hetold her that some peoples, who are using those vehicles, are notpaying rent amount. It is also averred that the officials of the FinanceCompanies were also harassing him. He was under tension.3.It is further averred that on 18.10.2022, the informant went to cran4040.22--4- drop her daughter to the school. When she came back at about 8.15a.m. that time she saw that her husband committed suicide byhanging him by rope in front of her house. A ladder was also lyingthere. She called her relatives and rescued him. He wasunconscious. He was taken to the hospital. On examination, thedoctor declared him dead. When the pockets of his pant werechecked a suicide note was found in a pocket. In the said suicidenote, the names of these applicants were mentioned. It is mentionedin it that one of the applicants viz. Smt. Aparna, is the sister of theinformant. She instigated the quarrel between informant and herhusband. She has caused stress to him. It is alleged that some ofthe applicants were not paying the amount towards rent of themachines to her husband. Accordingly the report was lodged.Suicide note was seized and charge sheet was filed. 4.Learned advocates for the applicants in respective applicationssubmitted that the applicants are falsely implicated in the crime.There is no direct or indirect material showing instigation on theirparts against the applicants to proceed further with the trial. Thesuicide note though written by the deceased, husband of theinformant, it does not show any instigation in any manner on the partof these applicants. Unless there is abetment, mere suicide is notpunishable. The essential ingredients of Section 107 of I.P.C. are notestablished. The applicants are falsely implicated in the crime.Learned advocates for the applicants placed reliance on the following