Mumbai, April 4 A spouse cannot be accused of aiding in the suicide of their partner simply because there was marital discord between the two, the Bombay High Court has said while quashing a case filed against a woman for aiding in her husband's suicide.
The High Court's Nagpur bench, in its order passed last week, held that marital discord is common in domestic life, and suicide cannot be attributed to either spouse simply because there was a marital dispute. It added that there must be instigation or direct encouragement from the accused to the victim to end their life.
"In such cases, it cannot be held that due to the instigation by one partner, the other committed suicide," the court said.
The bench allowed the plea filed by a 49-year-old woman, a teacher by profession, seeking to quash the case of aiding suicide filed against her in 2019 by the Amravati police.
A single bench of Justice Urmila Joshi Phalke said that in this case, both the husband and the wife had leveled allegations of ill-treatment and abuse against each other, and hence, at most, it could be said that the woman was responsible for the man's frustration.
"Such types of discord and differences are common in domestic life, and unless there is a guilty intention, it is not possible to show that the woman was responsible for the death of her husband," the HC said.
In its order, the court noted that to charge a person for the offence of aiding suicide, the prosecution must prove that the accused played a role in the suicide or encouraged the individual to take their life, or conspired with others to ensure that the person committed suicide.
The HC said that there must be instigation or direct encouragement from the accused to the victim to commit suicide.
"In order to attract the offence of aiding suicide, there must be mens rea (intention). Without knowledge or intention, there cannot be any aiding," the court remarked.
The bench said that words uttered by any of the spouses in a fit of anger would not be sufficient to constitute the offence of aiding suicide.
The suicide note left behind by the man nowhere reflects that he committed suicide due to the aiding by the woman, the court said, adding that it clearly states that no one is to be held responsible for his death.
The couple got married in December 1996. The man and his parents alleged that the woman used to abuse them and also assault the man. She also threatened to commit suicide and implicate them in false cases.
The in-laws also alleged that she was in an illicit relationship with another man and used to leave the matrimonial house for several days without informing.
In November 2019, the man committed suicide under pressure, after which his parents filed a case against the woman for aiding suicide.
The woman claimed that she too was physically assaulted and abused by her husband and his parents during the marriage.
The court noted that in the present case, there was marital discord between the couple and allegations of ill-treatment.