Refusal to marry and broken relationships do not incite suicide…Supreme Court overturns lower court’s decision

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has made a big comment in a suicide case. On Friday, the court said that broken relationships are emotionally painful and if there is no intention to abet suicide, it does not automatically amount to the crime of abetment. A bench of Justice Pankaj Mithal and Justice Ujjwal Bhuyan made this comment in a decision.

Supreme Court overturned the decision of Karnataka High Court

The apex court overturned the Karnataka High Court verdict which had convicted Kamruddin Dastagir Sanadi for the offenses of cheating and abetment of suicide under the IPC. ‘This is a case of a broken relationship, not criminal conduct,’ the judgment said. Sanadi was initially charged under IPC sections 417 (cheating), 306 (abetment of suicide) and 376 (rape).

What is the whole matter?

The trial court acquitted him/her of all charges, while the Karnataka High Court, on appeal by the state government, convicted him/her of cheating and abetment of suicide and sentenced him/her to five years’ imprisonment. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on him/her. According to the FIR lodged at the behest of the mother, her 21-year-old daughter was in love with the accused for the last eight years and had committed suicide in August 2007 because the accused had refused to fulfill his/her promise of marriage.

Supreme Court issued order of 17 pages

Justice Mithal wrote a 17-page judgment on behalf of the bench. The bench analyzed the two statements of the woman before her death and said there was neither any allegation of physical relationship between the couple nor any deliberate act leading to suicide. Therefore, the judgment emphasized that broken relationships are emotionally distressing, but they do not automatically amount to a criminal act.

‘It is wrong to hold the accused guilty in such cases’

The Supreme Court said, ‘Even in cases where the victim commits suicide due to cruelty, the courts have always recognized that discord and differences in domestic life are quite common in the society and the commission of such a crime is, to a large extent, Depends on the mental condition of the victim. The court also said, ‘Unless the criminal intention of the accused is established, it is not possible to convict him/her under Section 306 of the IPC.’

The judgment said there was no evidence to show that the accused instigated the woman to commit suicide. The court emphasized that refusing to marry even after a long relationship does not amount to provocation.