Harassment alone isn't enough to charge abetment of suicide, says SC

New Delhi, Dec 12: Amid the public uproar over the suicide of Atul Subhash in Bengaluru, the Supreme Court has clarified in a separate case that mere harassment is not enough to accuse someone of abetting suicide.

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The Court stated that simply harassing an individual does not constitute grounds for a charge of abetting suicide. To establish this charge, there must be clear evidence of either direct or indirect incitement. This ruling came from a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and P.B. Varale, who delivered their verdict on an appeal challenging a Gujarat High Court ruling. The High Court had refused to discharge a woman’s husband and two in-laws who were accused of harassing her and allegedly driving her to suicide.

The case, which dates back to 2021, involved allegations under Sections 498-A (subjecting a married woman to cruelty) and 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code. Section 306 prescribes a punishment of up to 10 years in prison and a fine for those found guilty of abetting suicide.

In its judgment on December 10, the Supreme Court emphasized that for a conviction under Section 306, the presence of clear mens rea (intention to commit the act) is required. The Court ruled that mere harassment alone is insufficient to establish guilt for abetting suicide. The prosecution must demonstrate that the accused took active or direct steps that led the victim to take their own life.

The bench further clarified that mens rea cannot be assumed or inferred but must be evident from the facts, underlining the need for deliberate and unmistakable intent to provoke or contribute to the act of suicide. Without such intent, the charge of abetment cannot be substantiated.

In this case, the Court discharged the three accused men from the charge of abetting suicide under Section 306, but upheld the charge under Section 498-A for cruelty. The woman’s father had filed the FIR against her husband and in-laws for these offences. It was noted that the woman had married in 2009 and faced alleged mental and physical harassment, partly due to the couple’s inability to have children within the first five years of marriage. In April 2021, her father was informed that she had committed suicide by hanging.

The Supreme Court reiterated that under Section 306 of the IPC, a person can only be charged if the prosecution proves that the accused directly contributed to the act of suicide. The Court emphasized that to secure a conviction under this section, there must be clear evidence of an intent to incite or push the victim toward suicide. The judgment underscored that in cases of a wife's death, courts must carefully examine the facts, the circumstances, and the evidence to determine if the alleged cruelty or harassment left the victim with no other option but to end her life.

The Supreme Court's observations come in the wake of national outrage over the death of Bengaluru techie Atul Subhash. Subhash had recorded an 80-minute video and written a 24-page suicide note, accusing his wife and in-laws of harassment and extorting money from him.