Harassment Not Sufficient To Declare Abetment To Suicide, Says SC Amid Outrage Over Bengaluru Techie Death

A bench comprising of Justices Vikram Nath and PB Varale made the observation while hearing an appeal challenging an order issued by the Gujarat High Court which refused to discharge a woman's husband and her in-laws for allegedly harassing her and driving her to suicide.

The case was registered in 2021 under sections 498-A - subjecting a married woman to cruelty - and 306 - abetment of suicide - under the Indian Penal Code.

"For a conviction under section 306 of the IPC, it is a well-established legal principle that the presence of clear mens rea - the intention to abet the act - is essential. Mere harassment, by itself, is not sufficient to find an accused guilty of abetting suicide," said the top court.

The apex court also added that the prosecution must demonstrate an active or direct action by the accused to be able to accuse them of abetting suicide.

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"Without this, the foundational requirement for establishing abetment under the law is not satisfied, underscoring the necessity of a deliberate and conspicuous intent to provoke or contribute to the act of suicide," it said.

The couple got married in 2009 and for the first five years of the marriage, the couple were unable to have a child, subjecting the wife to physical and mental harassment from the husband and two in-laws.

In April 2021, the woman's father received information that she had died by suicide.

Observing the case and the Gujarat HC order which found all three men guilty, the top court stated that "mere harassment is not enough".

"Mere allegations of harassment are insufficient to establish guilt. For a conviction, there must be evidence of a positive act by the accused, closely linked to the time of the incident, that compelled or drove the victim to commit suicide," the bench added.

The Supreme Court's observation comes amid national outrage over the death of a techie from Bengaluru Atul Subhash. Subhash left an 80-minute long video and a 24-page suicide note accusing his wife and in-laws of harassing and extorting money from him.