Gujarat High Court
State Of Gujarat vs Bhaveshkumar @ Devendra Parshuram ... on 20 February, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 1758 of 2008
FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:
HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE S.V. PINTO Sd/-
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Approved for Reporting Yes No
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STATE OF GUJARAT
Versus
BHAVESHKUMAR @ DEVENDRA PARSHURAM CHAUDHARI &
ORS.
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Appearance:
MR BHARGAV PANDYA, APP for the Appellant(s) No. 1
MR ASHISH M DAGLI(2203) for the Opponent(s)/Respondent(s) No.
1,2,3,4,5
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE S.V. PINTO
Date : 20/02/2025
ORAL JUDGMENT
1. This appeal has been filed by the appellant - State under Section 378(1)(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Code') against the judgment and the order dated 18.03.2008 in Sessions Case No.85 of 2007 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Fast Track Court No.1, Surendranagar (hereinafter referred to as 'the learned Trial Court'), whereby, the learned Trial Court has acquitted the Page 1 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined respondents - accused from the offences punishable under Sections 498(A), 306 and 114 of the Indian Penal Code (hereinafter referred to as 'the IPC'). The respondents are hereinafter referred to as 'the accused' as they stood in the rank and file in the original case, for the sake of convenience, clarity and brevity.
2. The relevant facts leading to filing of the present appeal are as under:
2.1. The accused No.1 was married to the deceased Rupaliben on 26.04.2007 and the accused Nos. 2 and 3 are the brother-in-law and sister-in-law and the accused Nos. 4 and 5 are the father-in-law and mother-in-law of deceased Rupaliben respectively. The complainant Narayan Devram Chaudhari, the father of deceased Rupaliben, filed a complaint on 30.06.2007 stating that he had received a phone call from Yashwantbhai Chaudhari and he along with his wife and the other family members left from Khedgam, Taluka Chalisgam, District Jalgaon, Maharashtra State and came to Ahmedabad on 29.06.2007 at around 3:00am to the Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad. That all the accused were present and the post-morterm on the dead body of Page 2 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined his daughter Rupaliben was done and they concluded the funeral rites. That they went to Radhey Tenements, Surendranagar and saw the place of incident and saw that the quilts in the house were burnt and they found that his daughter Rupaliben had died due to burn injuries. That all the accused used to mentally harass his daughter and demand furniture and other articles and money from her and as she could not bear the torture, , she committed suicide on 28.06.2007 at Surendranagar and the complaint was registered on 30.06.2007 at the Surendranagar City Police Station under Sections 306, 498(A) and 114 of the IPC, which was registered at I-C.R.No. 107 of 2007.
3.2. After registration of the FIR, the investigation was carried out by the concerned Investigating Officer and after having sufficient material against the accused, the chargesheet came to be filed before the concerned jurisdictional Magistrate. As the case was exclusively triable by the Court of Sessions therefore, after completion of process under Section 209 of the Cr.P.C., the case was committed to the Sessions Court and the same was registered as Sessions Case No.85 of 2007.Page 3 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined 3.3. The accused were duly served with the summons and the accused appeared before the learned Trial Court and it was verified whether the copies of all the police papers were provided to the accused as per the provisions of Section 207 of the Code and a charge was framed by the learned Trial Court at Exh.6 and the statements of the accused were recorded at Exhs.7 to 11 respectively, wherein, the accused denied all the contents of the charge and the entire evidence of the prosecution was taken on record. The prosecution has examined 16 witnesses and has produced 33 documentary evidence in support of the case. 3.4 After the closing pursis was submitted by the learned APP at Exh.69, the further statements of the accused under Section 313 of the Code were recorded. After hearing the arguments of the learned APP and learned advocate for the accused and after perusing the documents on record, the learned Trial Court, by the impugned judgment and order, has acquitted the accused for the offences punishable under Sections 306, 498(A) and 114 of the IPC.
4. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned judgment and order passed by the learned Trial Court, the Page 4 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined appellant - State has filed the present appeal mainly stating that the learned Trial Court has committed grave error on record of the case as the learned Trial Court has not properly appreciated the oral as well as documentary evidence in its true and proper perspective. The learned Trial Court has erred in not considering the ratio laid down by the judgment of the Apex Court which are applicable to the facts of the present case and the impugned judgment and order is perverse and suffering from legal and factual error apparent on the record. The learned Trial Court has erred in holding that the prosecution has failed to establish the case beyond the reasonable doubts. The learned Trial Court has, without giving any specific reason, not discussed the evidence of the witnesses in the impugned judgment and order of acquittal and has discarded the evidence of the witnesses. The learned Trial Court has erred in appreciating the fact that the deceased was being harassed by the accused and was being given mental and physical torture time and again and the learned Trial Court has not appreciated the important evidence in its real spirit and has acquitted the accused. The learned Trial Court has erred in not considering the evidence of the complainant and other witnesses Page 5 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined which was fully supported the case of the prosecution. The learned Trial Court has passed the impugned judgment and order of acquittal is without giving any cogent and convincing reasons, illegal, invalid and improper, and therefore, the same requires to be quashed and set aside.
5. Heard learned APP Mr. Bhargav Pandya for the appellant - State and learned advocate Mr.Viral Vyas for learned advocate Mr.Ashish Dagli the respondents. Perused the impugned judgment and order of acquittal and have re-appreciated the entire evidence of the prosecution on record of the case.
6. Learned APP Mr.Bhargav Pandya for the appellant - State has taken this Court through the entire evidence produced by the prosecution and has vehemently argued that the learned Trial Court has not appreciated the evidence properly and the prosecution has produced cogent evidence to prove the case and has successfully proved the case against the accused but the learned Trial Court has not considered the same and has acquitted the accused. The judgment and order of acquittal passed by the learned Judge is contrary to law, evidence on record and principles Page 6 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined of justice. The judgment and order of acquittal passed by learned Judge is based on inferences, not warranted by facts of the case and also on presumptions, not permitted by law. Learned APP has urged this Court to quash and set aside the impugned judgment and order of acquittal and to find the accused guilty for the said offence. Learned APP has urged this Court to allow the present appeal and impose maximum sentence on the accused.
7. Learned advocate Mr.Viral Vyas for the respondents - original accused has submitted that the learned Trial Court has appreciated all the evidence in true perspective and has not committed any error in acquitting the accused. Therefore, no interference of this Court is required in the impugned judgement and the order of acquittal passed by the learned Trial Court and has urged this Court to reject the appeal.
8. At the outset, before discussing the facts of the present case, it would be appropriate to refer to the observations of the Apex Court in the case of Chandrappa & Ors. Vs. State of Karnataka reported in 2007 (4) SCC 415, the Apex Court has observed as under:
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NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Recently, in Kallu Vs. State of M.P. (2006) 10 SCC 313 :
AIR 2006 SC 831, this Court stated; "While deciding an appeal against acquittal, the power of the Appellate Court is no less than the power exercised while hearing appeals against conviction. In both types of appeals, the power exists to review the entire evidence. However, one significant difference is that an order of acquittal will not be interfered with, by an appellate court, where the judgment of the trial court is based on evidence and the view taken is reasonable and plausible. It will not reverse the decision of the trial court merely because a different view is possible. The appellate court will also bear in mind that there is a presumption of innocence in favour of the accused and the accused is entitled to get the benefit of any doubt. Further if it decides to interfere, it should assign reasons for differing with the decision of the trial court". (emphasis supplied) ........ From the above decisions, in our considered view, the following general principles regarding powers of appellate Court while dealing with an appeal against an order of acquittal emerge;] (1) An appellate Court has full power to review, reappreciate and reconsider the evidence upon which the order of acquittal is founded;
(2) The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 puts no limitation, restriction or condition on exercise of such power and an appellate Court on the evidence before it may reach its own conclusion, both on questions of fact and of law; (3) Various expressions, such as, 'substantial and compelling reasons', 'good and sufficient grounds', 'very strong circumstances', 'distorted conclusions', 'glaring mistakes', etc. are not intended to curtail extensive powers of an appellate Court in an appeal against acquittal. Such phraseologies are more in the nature of 'flourishes of language' to emphasize the reluctance of an appellate Court to interfere with acquittal than to curtail the power of the Court to review the evidence and to come to its own conclusion.
(4) An appellate Court, however, must bear in mind that in case of acquittal, there is double presumption in favour of the accused. Firstly, the presumption of innocence available to him under the fundamental principle of criminal jurisprudence that every person shall be Page 8 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined presumed to be innocent unless he is proved guilty by a competent court of law. Secondly, the accused having secured his acquittal, the presumption of his innocence is further reinforced, reaffirmed and strengthened by the trial court.
(5) If two reasonable conclusions are possible on the basis of the evidence on record, the appellate court should not disturb the finding of acquittal recorded by the trial court.
9. It is a settled principle of law that in an appeal against acquittal, the Appellate Court is circumscribed by limitation that no interference has to be made in the order of acquittal unless after appreciation of the evidence produced before the learned Trial Court, it appears that there are some manifest illegality or perversity which could not have been possibly arrived at by the Court. It is also a settled principle that there is no embargo on the Appellate Court to review the evidence but, generally the order of acquittal shall not be interfered with as the presumption of innocence of the accused is further strengthened by the order of acquittal. The golden thread which runs through the web of administration of justice in criminal cases is that if two views are possible on the evidence adduced in the case of the prosecution i.e.
(i) guilt of the accused and (ii) his innocence, the view, which is in favour of the accused, should be adopted, and if the trial Court has Page 9 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined taken the view in favour of the accused, the Appellate Court should not disturb the findings of the acquittal. The Appellate Court can interfere with the judgment and order of acquittal only when there are compelling and substantial reasons and the order is clearly unreasonable and where the Appellate Court comes to conclusion that based on the evidence, the conviction is a must.
10. The accused has been charged with the offence under Section 306 of the IPC and at this juncture it would be fit to reproduce the observations of the Apex Court in the case of Prakash and others versus State of Maharashtra in the order passed in Criminal Appeal No.5543 of 2024 (Arising out of SLP (Cri.) No. 1073 of 2023 on 20 December 2024 in paras 12 to 22 which are as under:
"12. The relevant provisions of the IPC that fall for consideration are as under:
"306. Abetment of suicide.- If any person commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of such suicide, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
107. Abetment of a thing--A person abets the doing of a thing, who--
First.-- Instigates any person to do that thing; or Page 10 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Secondly.-- Engages with one or more other person or persons in any conspiracy for the doing of that thing, if an act or illegal omission takes place in pursuance of that conspiracy, and in order to the doing of that thing; or Thirdly.-- Intentionally aids, by any act or illegal omission, the doing of that thing.
Explanation-1: A person who, by willful misrepresentation, or by wilful concealment of a material fact which he is bound to disclose, voluntarily causes or procures, or attempts to cause or procure, a thing to be done, is said to instigate the doing of that thing.
Explanation 2: Whoever, either prior to or at the time of the commission of an act, does anything in order to facilitate the commission of that act, and thereby facilitates the commission thereof, is said to aid the doing of that act."
13. Section 306 of the IPC has two basic ingredients-first, an act of suicide by one person and second, the abetment to the said act by another person(s). In order to sustain a charge under Section 306 of the IPC, it must necessarily be proved that the accused person has contributed to the suicide by the deceased by some direct or indirect act. To prove such contribution or involvement, one of the three conditions outlined in Section 107 of the IPC has to be satisfied.
14. Section 306 read with Section 107 of IPC, has been interpreted, time and again, and its principles are well- established. To attract the offence of abetment to suicide, it is important to establish proof of direct or indirect acts of instigation or incitement of suicide by the accused, which must be in close proximity to the commission of suicide by the deceased. Such instigation or incitement should reveal a clear mens rea to abet the commission of suicide and should put the victim in such a position that he/she would have no other option but to commit suicide.
15. The law on abetment has been crystallised by a plethora of decisions of this Court. Abetment involves a mental process of instigating or intentionally aiding another person to do a 10 particular thing. To bring a charge under Section 306 of the IPC, the act of abetment would require the positive act of instigating or intentionally aiding another person to commit suicide. Page 11 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Without such mens rea on the part of the accused person being apparent from the face of the record, a charge under the aforesaid Section cannot be sustained. Abetment also requires an active act, direct or indirect, on the part of the accused person which left the deceased with no other option but to commit suicide.
16. This Court in the case of S.S. Chheena v. Vijay Kumar Mahajan and Another12, had an occasion to consider the scope of Section 306 of the IPC and the ingredients which are essential for abetment, as set out in Section 107 of the IPC. It observed as follows:
16. The word "suicide" in itself is nowhere defined in the Penal Code, however its meaning and import is well known and requires no explanation. "Sui" means "self"
and "cide" means "killing", thus implying an act of self- killing. In short, a person committing suicide must commit it by himself, irrespective of the means employed by him in achieving his object of killing himself. ...........
18. In our country, while suicide in itself is not an offence, considering that the successful offender is beyond the reach of law, attempt to suicide is an offence under Section 309 IPC.
..........
21. The learned counsel for the appellant has placed reliance on a judgment of this Court in Mahendra Singh V. State of M.P. [1995 Supp (3) SCC 731 : 1995 SCC (Cri) 1157] In Mahendra Singh [1995 Supp (3) SCC 731 : 1995 SCC (Cri) 1157] the allegations levelled were as under: (SCC p. 731, para 1) "1. ... My mother-in-law and husband and sister-in-law (husband's elder brother's wife) harassed me. They beat me and abused me. My husband Mahendra wants to marry a second time. He has illicit connections with my sister-in-law. Because of these reasons and being harassed I want to die by burning." The Court on the aforementioned allegations came to a definite conclusion that by no stretch the ingredients of abetment are attracted on the statement of the deceased. According to the Page 12 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined appellant, the conviction of the appellant under Section 306 IPC merely on the basis of the aforementioned allegation of harassment of the deceased is unsustainable in law.
... ...........
23. In State of W.B. v. Orilal Jaiswal [(1994) 1 SCC 73 : 1994 SCC (Cri) 107] this Court has cautioned that: (SCC p. 90, para 17) "17. ... The court should be extremely careful in assessing the facts and circumstances of each case and the evidence adduced in the trial for the purpose of finding whether the cruelty meted out to the victim had in fact induced her to end the life by committing suicide. If it [appears] to the court that a victim committing suicide was hypersensitive to ordinary petulance, discord and 12 differences in domestic life quite common to the society to which the victim belonged and such petulance, discord and differences were not expected to induce a similarly circumstanced individual in a given society to commit suicide, the conscience of the court should not be satisfied for basing a finding that the accused charged of abetting the offence of suicide should be found guilty."
24. This Court in Chitresh Kumar Chopra v. State (Govt. of NCT of Delhi) [(2009) 16 SCC 605 : (2010) 3 SCC (Cri) 367] had an occasion to deal with this aspect of abetment. The Court dealt with the dictionary meaning of the words "instigation" and "goading". The Court opined that there should be intention to provoke, incite or encourage the doing of an act by the latter. Each person's suicidability pattern is different from the other. Each person has his own idea of self-esteem and self-respect. Therefore, it is impossible to lay down any straitjacket formula in dealing with such cases. Each case has to be decided on the basis of its own facts and circumstances.
25. Abetment involves a mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding a person in doing of a thing. Without a positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid in committing suicide, conviction cannot Page 13 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined be sustained. The intention of the legislature and the ratio of the cases decided by this Court is clear that in order to convict a person under Section 306IPC there has to be a clear mens rea to commit the offence. It also requires an active act or direct act which led the deceased to commit suicide seeing no option and that act must have been intended to push the deceased into such a position that he committed suicide."
17. This Court held that abetment involves the mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding a person in doing of a thing. Therefore, without a positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid a person in committing suicide, conviction cannot be sustained. This Court further observed that the intention of the legislature and the ratio of the cases decided by this Court is clear that in order to convict a person under Section 306 of IPC, there has to be a clear mens rea to commit the offence. Abetment also requires an active act or direct act which led the deceased to commit suicide seeing no other option and that act must have been intended to push the deceased into such a position that he committed suicide. However, this Court has cautioned that since each person reacts differently to the same provocation depending on a variety of factors, it is impossible to lay down a straightjacket formula to deal with such cases. Therefore, every such case has to be decided on the basis of its own facts and circumstances.
18. More recently, in the case of Jayedeepsinh Pravinsinh Chavda and Others v. State of Gujarat, this Court has relied on S.S. Chheena (supra) to hold that the element of mens rea cannot simply be presumed or inferred, instead it must be evident and explicitly discernible. Without this, the foundational requirement for establishing abetment under the law, that is deliberate and conspicuous intention to provoke or contribute to the act of suicide, would remain unfulfilled. This Court observed as follows:
"18. 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. The prosecution must demonstrate an active or direct action by the accused that led the deceased to take his/her own life. The element of mens rea cannot simply be presumed or inferred; it must Page 14 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined be evident and explicitly discernible. 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."
19. It is, therefore, evident that the positive act of instigation is a crucial element of abetment. While dealing with an issue of a similar nature, this Court in the case of Ramesh Kumar v. State of Chhattisgarh laid down the parameters of what would be constituted to be an act of instigation. This Court observed as follows:-
"20. Instigation is to goad, urge forward, provoke, incite or encourage to do "an act". To satisfy the requirement of instigation though it is not necessary that actual words must be used to that effect or what constitutes instigation must necessarily and specifically be suggestive of the consequence. Yet a reasonable certainty to incite the consequence must be capable of being spelt out. The present one is not a case where the accused had by his acts or omission or by a continued course of conduct created such circumstances that the deceased was left with no other option except to commit suicide in which case an instigation may have been inferred. A word uttered in the fit of anger or emotion without intending the consequences to actually follow cannot be said to be instigation."
20. It could thus be seen that this Court observed that instigation is to goad, urge forward, provoke, incite or encourage to do "an act". It has been held that in order to satisfy the requirement of instigation though it is not necessary that actual words must be used to that effect or what constitutes instigation must necessarily and specifically be suggestive of the consequence, however, a reasonable certainty to incite the consequence must be capable of being spelt out. Applying the law to the facts of the case, this Court went on to hold that a word uttered in the fit of anger or 16 emotion without intending the consequences to actually follow cannot be said to be instigation.
21. Relying on the decision in the case of Ramesh Kumar (supra), this Court in the case of Ude Singh and Others v. State of Haryana observed as follows:
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NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined "16. In cases of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be a proof of direct or indirect act(s) of incitement to the commission of suicide. It could hardly be disputed that the question of cause of a suicide, particularly in the context of an offence of abetment of suicide, remains a vexed one, involving multifaceted and complex attributes of human behaviour and responses/reactions. In the case of accusation for abetment of suicide, the court would be looking for cogent and convincing proof of the act(s) of incitement to the commission of suicide. In the case of suicide, mere allegation of harassment of the deceased by another person would not suffice unless there be such action on the part of the accused which compels the person to commit suicide; and such an offending action ought to be proximate to the time of occurrence. Whether a person has abetted in the commission of suicide by another or not, could only be gathered from the facts and circumstances of each case.
16.1. For the purpose of finding out if a person has abetted commission of suicide by another, the consideration would be if the accused is guilty of the act of instigation of the act of suicide. As explained and reiterated by this Court in the decisions above referred, instigation means to goad, urge forward, provoke, incite or encourage to do an act. If the persons who committed suicide had been hypersensitive and the action of the accused is otherwise not ordinarily expected to induce a similarly circumstanced person to commit suicide, it may not be safe to hold the accused guilty of abetment of suicide.
But, on the other hand, if the accused by his acts and by his continuous course of conduct creates a situation which leads the deceased perceiving no other option except to commit suicide, the case may fall within the four corners of Section 306 IPC. If the accused plays an active role in tarnishing the self-esteem and self-respect of the victim, which eventually draws the victim to commit suicide, the accused may be held guilty of abetment of suicide. The question of mens rea on the part of the accused in such cases would be examined with reference to the actual acts and deeds of the accused and if the acts and deeds are only of such nature where the accused intended nothing more than harassment or snap show of anger, a particular case may fall short of the offence of abetment of suicide.
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NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined However, if the accused kept on irritating or annoying the deceased by words or deeds until the deceased reacted or was provoked, a particular case may be that of abetment of suicide. Such being the matter of delicate analysis of human behaviour, each case is required to be examined on its own facts, while taking note of all the surrounding factors having bearing on the actions and psyche of the accused and the deceased.
16.2. We may also observe that human mind could be affected and could react in myriad ways; and impact of one's action on the mind of another carries several imponderables. Similar actions are dealt with differently by different persons; and so far a particular person's reaction to any other human's action is concerned, there is no specific theorem or yardstick to estimate or assess the same. Even in regard to the factors related with the question of harassment of a girl, many factors are to be considered like age, personality, upbringing, rural or urban set-ups, education, etc. Even the response to the ill action of eve teasing and its impact on a young girl could also vary for a variety of factors, including those of background, self-confidence and upbringing. 18 Hence, each case is required to be dealt with on its own facts and circumstances."
22. It could thus be seen that this Court observed that in cases of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be a proof of direct or indirect act(s) of incitement to the commission of suicide. It has been held that since the cause of suicide particularly in the context of the offence of abetment of suicide involves multifaceted and complex attributes of human behaviour, the court would be looking for cogent and convincing proof of the act(s) of incitement to the commission of suicide. This Court further observed that a mere allegation of harassment of the deceased by another person would not suffice unless there is such action on the part of the accused which compels the person to commit suicide. This Court also emphasised that such an offending action ought to be proximate to the time of occurrence. It was further clarified that the question of mens rea on the part of the accused in such cases would be examined with reference to the actual acts and deeds of the accused. It was further held that if the acts and deeds are only of such nature Page 17 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined where the accused intended nothing more than harassment or a snap-show of 19 anger, a particular case may fall short of the offence of abetment of suicide, however, if the accused kept on irritating or annoying the deceased by words or deeds until the deceased reacted or was provoked, a particular case may be that of abetment of suicide. This Court held that owing to the fact that the human mind could be affected and could react in myriad ways and that similar actions are dealt with differently by different persons, each case is required to be dealt with its own facts and circumstances."
11. In light of the above, the evidence produced by the prosecution on record is appreciated and the prosecution has examined PW-1 Rasikbhai Ratilal Joshi at Exh.15 and PW-3 Rahimbhai Hussainbhai Kagathara at Exh.20. Both the witnesses are the panch witnesses of the panchnama of the place of the offence produced at Exh.16 and the both the witnesses have stated that on 30.06.2007, while they were at Jawahar Chowk and near the Tower respectively, when the police came in the vehicle and asked them to affix their signatures on the ready panchnama which is produced at Exh.16. The witnesses have been declared hostile and have been cross-examined by the learned APP but, nothing to support the case of the prosecution has come on record. 11.2. The prosecution has examined PW-2 Durgaben Page 18 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Govindbhai Satle at Exh.18 and the witness is the panch witness of the inquest panchnama, which is produced at Exh.19, but, the witness has not supported the case of the prosecution and has been declared hostile.
11.3 The prosecution has examined PW-4 Narayan Devram Chaudhari at Exh.21 and the witness has stated that his daughter Rupaliben was married to the accused No.1 on 26.04.2007 and after marriage, she was residing at Songir village, District Dhuliya, Maharashtra State. That she was in her matrimonial home for 15 days after her marriage and they brought her back home and she stayed at her parental house for 6 days. That her mother-in-law came and and took her back to the matrimonial house and demanded an amount of Rs.1,00,000/- to construct a house. That he did not have the money and he told her that he would give it later on and after three weeks, once again, he went to bring his daughter and she came back to the parental house. That his daughter did not have any conversation with him but, used to converse with her mother and told her mother that her in-laws were demanding the amount and harassing her. That after 5-6 Page 19 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined days, the accused No.2 and 3 came and took her and after some times, he, once again, brought her back to her parental house. That she went back to village Songir and then, came to Surendranagar and stayed with her in-laws for 3-4 days and thereafter, she expired. That he and his wife and all the other relatives came and found that his daughter had expired and but, he does not know how she had expired and he saw her dead body at Civil Hospital. That her in-laws were stating that the incident has occurred as the gas bottle exploded and her cremation was concluded at Ahmedabad. The witness has produced a chit written by his daughter in Marathi language wherein it is stated that her husband and her mother-in-law would burn her if she did not take the vessels and money as demanded by them and the chit was given by his daughter to her mother when she had come on the last occasion to her parental house. The chit was produced by him at the Surendranagar Police Station and he had filed the complaint which is produced at Exh.23. The witness has not supported the case of the prosecution and has been declared hostile and has been cross-examined by the learned APP. During the cross-examination by the learned advocate for the accused, the witness has stated that Page 20 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined his daughter was engaged as per the rites of his caste and she was married one week after the engagement. That after the marriage, his daughter and her husband was residing along in village Songir and his daughter and son-in-law had come to Surendranagar for a short visit. That his daughter had never come to his house in anger from her matrimonial home and in his caste, there is no customs of dowry. That in his caste, the daughter is sent only with 'red vermillion' and when he came to Ahmedabad, all the accused were present at the Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad. The witness has produced a stamp paper, on which, the some writings have been written at Exh.25 and he has identified his signature on the same. The witness has stated that his daughter and the accused No.1 liked each other very much and whenever, his daughter wrote a letter or spoke to him on the telephone she would say that she was very happy. The notebook produced at Exh.24 is the only book with the hand writing of his deceased daughter and after the chit was found, no complaint has been filed with the police station and when the incident had occurred. his daughter was in Surendranagar and the chit was at his village. That he brought the chit and came to Surendranagar and after the marriage, his Page 21 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined daughter stayed with the accused No.1 for 15 days. That his daughter and son-in-law were residing at Khedgam and village Songir and the other accused were residing at Surendranagar. That the place where they were residing in Surendranagar is a residential area and there are the residential houses all around. 11.4. The prosecution has examined PW-5 Uday Abhiman Chaudhari at Exh.27 and the witness is the brother-in-law of the deceased. The witness has supported the case of the prosecution and during the cross-examination by the learned advocate for the accused, the witness has stated that the accused did not demand for any money in his presence but, he had known from his father- in-law that the money was demanded. That after marriage the deceased and her husband were residing at village Songir and other accused were residing at Surendranagar. That after marriage the deceased had come from village Songir to Khedgam on 2 to 3 occasions and she did not have any conversation with him and the father-in-law of the deceased had called them and informed them about the incident.
11.5 The prosecution has examined PW-6 Yashwantbhai Page 22 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Lotanbhai Chaudhari at Exh.30 and the witness has stated that he was working in Surendranagar District Police Force and has retired as an ASI and his daughter was married at Khedgam in Maharashtra State. That he was at his house and he came to know about he incident and went to C.J.Hospital, where the deceased Rupaliben was being treated and was thereafter taken to Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad for further treatment. The document produced at Exh.22 is in Marathi language and he had translated the same in Gujarati. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that on the date of the incident, the accused No.4 and 5 were not in Surendranagar and the accused No.2 was at work. The documents at Exhs. 25 and 26 were executed in the presence of the relatives and in which, it was mentioned that there was no harassment from the father-in-law of the deceased. That the deceased had not visited house and she had not stated that she had any kind of harassment.
11.6. The prosecution has examined PW-7 Dr.Maheshkumar Pursottambhai Kapadiya at Exh.31 and the witness is the Medical Officer, who has performed the post-mortem on the dead body of Page 23 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined the deceased. That witness has stated that the post-mortem was performed on 29.06.2007 between 11:05am to 12:05pm and the dead body had sustained 85% to 90% burns, which was to 2 to 3 degree over body with the area covering head, face, chest and both arms upto 1/3 of forearm and trunk. Back area had mild burns and both thighs, private parts, legs except lower legs, both lower 1/3 of legs blisters and readness and blacking of skin. There were deep burns over the chest, face thigh and abdomen area with deep muscle involvement and blisters with skin separated with redness on many parts of the body. There were multiple encircling contusions present with grip grove about 2.5-2.75cm wide on right and left legs. Multiple encircling contusions grove like 2.5-2.75 cm wide with redness and four multiple contusions present over back of thigh 9X2.0 cm with rail like pattern with redness and multiple contusions over both the primary inner soles with redness. The injuries were ante-mortem in nature and the cause of death was shock due to burns over the body. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that the patient was brought from C.J.Hospital, Surendranagar with bandages over hands and legs and wrists and they were opened at the time of post-mortem. That Page 24 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined when he had opened the bandages, treatment was given on the wrists and hands and legs and the portion was red in colour. 11.7. PW-8 Vasudevbhai Bhalabhai Bharwad examined at Exh.37 is the Assistant Examiner of Exchange Documents, who was working at FSL and had examined the documents sent by the Investigating Officer. The witness has produced the opinion regarding the disputed writings marked D/1 and natural writings marked N/1 to N/6 and NN/1 and NN/6 and has stated that they were written by the same person. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that the police did not record his statement and the reasons were not in a sealed cover and were with him till the date of his deposition. That he has not received any degree as Hand Writing Expert and the hand writings of a young person and an aged person are different. The writing that he had examined were the writings of an aged person.
11.8 The prosecution has examined PW-9 Rajesh Bisangsingh Bagdavat at Exh.45 and the witness has stated that he was called by the Surat Police at the Surat Railway Police Chowki where the police from Surendranagar had come and Narayan Page 25 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Chaudhari from Surendranagar was present and he had brought a note-book which was of his deceased daughter and his signature was taken in the note-book which is produced at Exh.24 The panchnama by which the note-book was seized is produced is produced at Exh.46. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that when he was called the Surat Police Railway Police Chowki, a number of persons were present and he had affixed his signature on the note-book and the panchnama as instructed. 11.9. PW-10 Arunaben Himmatlal Panara examined at Exh.47 is a PSO, who has registered the offence at Surendranagar City Police Station being I-C.R.No.107 of 2007. During the cross- examination, the witness has stated that at the time of registration of the complaint, the document of Janvajog Entry No.32 of 2007 was not on hand and the panchnama is drawn immediately after the Accidental Death Case is registered.
11.10. The prosecution has examined PW-11 Kamalbai Narayan Chaudhari at Exh.51 and the witness is the mother of the deceased Rupaliben, who has stated that after the marriage of her daughter Rupaliben with the accused No.1, her daughter was Page 26 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined staying at village Songir, and thereafter, she had come to Surendranagar with her husband and the other accused. They were informed that the edge of her sari was burnt in the primus and she had sustained burn injuries and they came to Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad where her daughter was kept and the final cremation was perfomed at Ahmedabad. The accused were residing at Surendranagar and burnt clothes pieces were found at their house. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that at the time of the engagement and marriage, the talk about the clothes and vessels to be given had taken place and thereafter, no other dowry was demanded. That after the chit was found they had sent Rupaliben to her matrimonial home and she had informed her husband about the chit but her husband did not take any steps. That her daughter never came back from the matrimonial house in anger and she had only stated that she was being harassed.
11.11. The prosecution has examined PW-12 Harunbeg Husenbeg Mirza at Exh.52 and the witness is the ASI, Shahibaug Police Station, who has stated that on 28.06.2007, he was on duty at Page 27 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Civil Hospital OPD Police Chowki between12:00 to 20:00 hours and at 18:30 hours PMO Dr. Bhavin Shah informed him that Rupaliben Bhaveshbhai Chaudhari, aged about 22 years, residing at Radhe Tenement, Surendranagar was brought for treatment in burnt condition after taking primary treatment in Surendranagar and she has expired at 17:45 hours. That she was married for two months and the inquest panchnama was drawn by the Executive Magistrate on 29.06.2007 between 9:40 to 10:25 hours and the post- mortem was conducted by the panel doctors and as the parental family members of the deceased were not present, the dead body was kept in the cold room and when her father Narayan Devram Chaudhari came, he was given the dead body. During the cross- examination, the witness has stated that he did not have the papers of Janvajog Entry No.32 of 2007.
11.12. The prosecution has examined PW-13 Kiritbhai Ramabhai Parmar at Exh. 53 and the witness is the Investigating Officer, who has stated that Station Diary Entry No. 32 of 2007 was entered at Surendranagar City Police Station on 28.06.2007 and he had investigated the same. That he gone to the place of incident Page 28 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined and deceased Rupaliben, the wife of Bhaveshkumar Chaudhari, was at C.J.Hospital, Surendranagar and was thereafter transferred to Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad. That he had recorded the statements of the neighbours and prepared the panchnama which is produced at Exh.16. The photographs were taken which are produced at Exh.36. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that the documents of Janvajog Entry were not placed along with the papers of the offence.
11.13. The prosecution has examined PW-14 Rafiqbhai Ismailbhai Bhatti at Exh.54 and PW-15 Govindbhai Bavalbhai Bharwad at Exh.56 and both the witnesses are the panch witnesses of the panchnama produced at Exh.56, by which, the Investigating Officer has seized the chit alleged to have been written by the deceased. Both the witnesses have not supported the case of the prosecution and have stated that they have merely affixed their signatures on the ready panchnama and no chit was seized in their presence. The witnesses have been cross-examined by the learned APP, but they have not supported the case of the prosecution. 11.14 The prosecution has examined PW-16 Anubha Page 29 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined Keshubha Parmar at Exh. 57 and the witness is the Investigating Officer, who has narrated in detail the entire procedure that was undertaken during investigation. During the cross-examination, the witness has stated that all the statements are recorded on the same day and on the same place and all the statements are similar. That he did not go to the place of incident and he had recorded the statements of neighbours but they were not helpful to the case of the prosecution and hence, the same have not been placed in the papers of charge sheet. That he had not recorded the statement of the caste members who had gathered at Ahmedabad and he had recorded only the statements of the family members of the deceased. The note-book of the deceased was handed over by the complainant at Surat and there are no witness who have stated they had seen the deceased writing and he had not recorded the statement of any teachers of the deceased. That the note-book has writings in Marathi language and they were not translated in Gujarati language.
12. On minute appreciation of the entire evidence of the prosecution, as per the case of the complainant, the incident had Page 30 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined occurred on 28.06.2007 and the complaint has been filed on 30.06.2007. In the evidence of the complainant and PW-11 Kamalbai, Narayan Chaudhri the mother of the deceased Rupaliben, it has emerged that the deceased was residing at village Songir and not at Surendranagar. Immediately after the incident, the deceased was taken to C.J.Hospital at Surendranagar and was treated at C.J.Hospital Surendranagar but there are no documents produced on record to appreciate as to what was stated by the deceased in the history before the treating doctor and the treating doctor at Surendranagar has not been examined before the learned Trial Court. The Janvajog Entry has been produced at Exh.58 which has been given by the accused, wherein, he had stated that he had taken his jeep and gone to Patadi and while he was at Patadi in the afternoon, his elder brother telephoned him and asked him to come home and he found that his wife was burnt and taken to C.J.Hospital for treatment. It has also emerged on record that at the time of incident, the deceased was alone at home and the Accidental Death was registered but no documents about the Accidental Death and the investigation conducted by the Investigating Officer regarding the Accidental Death have come on Page 31 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined record. The prosecution has not examined any neighbours even though the statements were recorded and as per the Investigating Officer PW-13 Kiritbhai Ramabhai Parmar, the neighbours have not supported the case of the prosecution and hence, their statements have not been enclosed along with the charge sheet. The delay in filing the complaint has also not been explained by the complainant. The chit has been produced by the complainant PW-4 Narayan Devram Chaudhari on 30.06.2007 and the note- book has been produced by the complainant on 24.08.2007 at Surat Railway Police Chowki. There is no explanation as to why the note-book was produced after almost two months of the accident and there is no conclusive evidence that the chit and the note-book are the hand writings of the deceased. Moreover, in the evidence of PW-11 Kamalbai, the mother of the deceased, it has emerged on record that the chit was given by the deceased when she had visited her paternal home and it was given to her father but no action was taken on the chit and there is no conclusive evidence that the chit was, in fact, written by the deceased at any point of time prior to the incident. It has also emerged on record that there is no custom of dowry in the caste of the complainant and there is Page 32 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined no evidence that any dowry was in fact demanded or given by the complainant to the deceased at the time of the marriage. The Investigating Officer has also stated that the deceased and the accused No.1 was residing at village Sonagiri and all the accused were not residing together. In light of the judgment of the Apex Court in Prakash (Supra), there is no iota of evidence that the accused immediately preceding the incident had meted out any cruelty to the victim and that they had intentionally aided or instigated the deceased to commit suicide. There is no iota of evidence that the accused were present on the date of incident on the date of incident or prior to that and after the marriage, it appears that most of the time, the deceased was residing at her paternal home and had gone to her maternal home only four days prior to the incident.
13. In view of the above, the learned trial Court has appreciated the entire evidence in proper perspective and there does not appear to be any infirmity and illegality in the impugned judgment and order of acquittal. The learned Trial Court has appreciated all the evidence and this Court is of the considered Page 33 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.A/1758/2008 JUDGMENT DATED: 20/02/2025 undefined opinion that the learned Trial Court was completely justified in acquitting the accused of the charges leveled against them. The findings recorded by the learned Trial Court are absolutely just and proper and no illegality or infirmity has been committed by the learned trial Court and this Court is in complete agreement with the findings, ultimate conclusion and the resultant order of acquittal recorded by the learned Trial Court. This Court finds no reason to interfere with the impugned judgment and order and the present appeal is devoid of merits and resultantly, the same is dismissed.
14. The impugned judgment and the order dated 18.03.2008 in Sessions Case No.85 of 2007 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Fast Track Court No.1, Surendranagar is hereby confirmed.
15. Bail bond stands cancelled. Record and proceedings be sent back to the concerned Trial Court forthwith.
Sd/-
(S. V. PINTO,J) F.S.KAZI Page 34 of 34 Uploaded by F.S. KAZI(HC01075) on Thu Feb 20 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Feb 20 22:46:38 IST 2025