Gujarat High Court
Mansiben Jiteshbhai (Vaishnav) ... vs State Of Gujarat on 19 July, 2024
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024
undefined
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR QUASHING & SET ASIDE
FIR/ORDER) NO. 20822 of 2021
==========================================================
MANSIBEN JITESHBHAI (VAISHNAV) ACHARYA & ANR.
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.
==========================================================
Appearance:
LEARNED SENIOR COUNSEL MR TEJAS M BAROT(2964) for the
Applicant(s) No. 1,2 with LEARNED ADVOCATE MS RHEA CHOKSHI
MR.DIPEN F CHAUDHARI(6740) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MS DIVYANGNA JHALA for the Respondent(s) No. 1
==========================================================
CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HASMUKH D. SUTHAR
Date : 19/07/2024
ORAL ORDER
[1.0] RULE returnable forthwith. Learned advocates waive service of notice of Rule on behalf of the respective respondents. With the consent of learned advocates appearing for respective parties, present application is taken up for final hearing.
[2.0] By way of this application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as "CrPC"), the applicants have prayed to quash and set aside the FIR being CR No.11195019210939 of 2021 registered with Deesa Rural Police Station, Banaskantha for the offence punishable under Sections 306 and 114 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short "IPC) and to quash all other consequential proceedings arising therefrom.
Page 1 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined [3.0] Heard learned Senior Advocate Mr. Tejas Barot with learned advocate Ms.Rhea Chokshi for the applicants, learned APP Ms.Divyangana Jhala for respondent No.1
- State of Gujarat and learned advocate Mr.Dipen F. Chaudhary for respondent No.2 - original complainant.
[4.0] It is the case of the applicants that the applicants work at Bharat Nursing College in Rasana Mota, Taluka Deesa, District Banaskantha. The college offers education in nursing across three courses: Auxiliary Nurse Midwifery (ANM) spanning two years, General Nurse Midwifery (GNM) lasting three years, and a four- year B.Sc. Nursing program. Applicant No. 1 has served as the Principal for three years, while Applicant No. 2 holds the positions of professor and B.Sc. Nursing Class Coordinator. It is notable that the B.Sc. Nursing examination is conducted annually. Paresh Punjabhai Suthar, brother of respondent No. 2, was a Second Year B.Sc. Nursing student. It is pertinent to mention that Paresh Suthar had a history of disruptive behavior, irregular attendance, misconduct with peers, and non-payment of college fees. He had previously apologized to the college for his actions. The Pre-Final Exam for the Second Year took place in late August 2021, including a subject called CET (Communication Education Technology) held on August 27, 2021, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. Before the exam, Paresh Suthar Page 2 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined managed to acquire a key to the room where the question papers and answer sheets were stored. On the morning of August 27, 2021, unstamped answer sheets were distributed due to time constraints, contrary to usual practice. During the exam, faculty member Kaushik Parmar, acting as supervisor in Class Room No. 1, discovered that Darshan Joshi's answer sheet bore the college's stamp, despite the unstamped sheets being distributed. Upon investigation, it was found that within ten minutes of receiving the paper, Darshan Joshi had completed detailed answers to all questions. Upon discovering similar incidents involving Mihir Parmar and Paresh Suthar in Class Room No. 2, all three students were escorted to the Principal's office (applicant No. 1). Subsequently, their parents were contacted due to the seriousness of the situation. Paresh Suthar admitted to having obtained and distributed the stolen question papers and answer sheets to the other students, Mihir Parmar and Darshan Joshi. All three students apologized for their actions. The applicants assert that the deceased was never harassed by any college staff, as evidenced by CCTV footage provided to the investigating agency. However, respondent No. 2 filed a delayed FIR alleging baseless accusations against the applicants. The informant claims to be the brother of the deceased and alleges that on August 27, 2021, Page 3 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined applicant No. 2, acting as an exam supervisor, caught Paresh Suthar, Darshan Joshi, and Mihir Parmar cheating, leading to them being taken to applicant No. 1's office. Allegedly, applicant No. 2 slapped Paresh Suthar and made threatening remarks, which the informant suggests led to the deceased's suicide after being suspended. The applicants maintain that they acted responsibly upon discovering the exam irregularities, as any educational institution would. They approached the Sessions Court for anticipatory bail (Criminal Misc. Application No. 600 of 2021), which was granted on October 11, 2021. The applicants request the Hon'ble Court to quash the FIR on various grounds to be presented during the hearing.
[5.0] Learned Senior Advocate for the applicants has submitted that applicants are falsely enroped in the offence and they have not played any role as alleged against them by the complainant. They are employees of Bharat Nursing College. The college is engaged in imparting education in nursing. applicant No. 1 is the principal of the college, while applicant No. 2 is a professor and the class coordinator for B.Sc. Nursing. It is submitted that the deceased, Paresh Suthar, had engaged in disturbing activities in the past. He was irregular in attending college, behaved poorly with students (especially girls), did not pay college fees, and was involved in the illegal activity of stealing Page 4 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined question papers. Due to his conduct, he and his fellow students were summoned to the Principal's office, where they apologized for their actions. He made a duplicate key and stole the papers, which he then sold to Mihir Parmar and Darshan Joshi. These students also apologized for their involvement. Following this incident, the police conducted an investigation and interviewed other staff members and students. From their preliminary investigation, it was found that the deceased was involved in cheating during examinations. This fact is evident from the communications addressed to the college, where police authorities requested information. In light of the above, it is submitted that the applicants acted responsibly in their roles as college administrators. When they discovered the serious irregularities committed by these students, including Paresh, they took appropriate action as any other college staff would under similar circumstances. Therefore, the applicants cannot be accused of committing any offense as alleged in the FIR or otherwise. In this regard, CCTV footage has already been provided to the investigating agency. It is further submitted that respondent No. 2, the informant, filed the FIR belatedly, making baseless allegations against the applicants. It is submitted that deceased committed suicide due to his own guilt. Therefore, it cannot be Page 5 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined termed as proximate cause for deceased to commit suicide. Hence, he has requested to quash and set aside the impugned FIR and the further proceedings thereto.
[5.1.] It is submitted that no offences have been committed by the applicants which is clearly discernible from the facts of the case However, abusing the provisions of law, the impugned FIR has been filed against the applicants which is required to be quashed. It ought to have been appreciated that in order to bring home charge under Section 306 of IPC, ingredients of section 107 of IPC, pertaining to abetment of a thing, were required to be satisfied. The alleged act committed by the applicants cannot be termed as instigation to commit suicide. It is submitted that the case at hand does not fall within the purview of abetment to suicide u/s. 306 and 107 of IPC. It cannot be said that alleged acts and conduct of the accused were such that deceased had no other option but to end his life. The ingredient of abetment defined in Section 107 of IPC are not satisfied in the instant case and therefore, the application deserves to be allowed.
[6.0] Learned advocate appearing for respondent No.2 has vehemently opposed the present application and submitted that the act of the applicants are the Page 6 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined proximate cause for the deceased to have taken the extreme step. Hence, he has requested to dismiss the present application.
[6.1] Learned advocate appearing for respondent No.2 has submitted that due to constant harassment as the applicants slapped the deceased two times and suspended from the class, dues to this, the deceased was under the pressure and has committed suicide. It is further submitted that two classmates have also supported the case of the prosecution. Hence, the learned advocate has requested to dismiss the present application.
[7.0] Learned APP appearing for respondent - State of Gujarat has adopted the submissions made by learned advocate for respondent No.2 and has submitted that present application seeking quashing of FIR for the offence punishable under Section 306 of IPC is not required to be entertained and hence, has requested to dismiss the present application.
[8.0] I have given thoughtful consideration to the arguments canvassed by learned advocates appearing for respective parties and gone through the impugned FIR as well as the averments made in the application.
[9.0] The essential ingredients to invoke the provision of Section 306 and Section 107 of IPC:
Page 7 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined 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.
Abetment defined under Section 107 of the IPC involves a mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding that person in doing of a thing. In cases of conspiracy also it would involve that mental process of entering into conspiracy for the doing of that thing. More active role which can be described as instigating or aiding the doing of a thing it required before a person can be said to be abetting the commission of offence under Section 306 of IPC.
Abetment Section 107 IPC defines abetment of a thing.
The offence of abetment is a separate and distinct offence provided in the Act as an offence. A person, abets the doing of a thing when (1) he instigates any person to do that thing; or (2) engages with one or more other persons in any conspiracy for the doing of that thing; or (3) intentionally aids, by act or illegal omission, the doing of that thing. These things are essential to complete abetment as a crime.Page 8 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024
NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined The word "instigate" literally means to provoke, incite, urge on or bring about by persuasion to do any thing. The abetment may be by instigation, conspiracy or intentional aid, as provided in the three clauses of Section 107. Section 109 provides that if the act abetted is committed in consequence of abetment and there is no provision for the punishment of such abetment, then the offender is to be punished with the punishment provided for the original offence. 'Abetted' in Section 109 means the specific offence abetted. Therefore, the offence for the abetment of which a person is charged with the abetment is normally linked with the proved offence.
[9.1] Section 306 of IPC penalises abetment of suicide. It is a unique legal phenomenon in the Indian Penal Code that the only act, the attempt of which along will become an offence. In order to invoke the provisions of Section 306 of Indian Penal Code, section 107 of Indian Penal Code is required to be satisfied by the prosecution. Section 107 of the Indian Penal Code includes the acts, omissions and commissions and also instigation with the deliberation and intention. Instigation consists in actively suggesting and stimulating another to act. It may be personal or through a third party. Instigation necessarily indicates some active suggestion, or support or stimulation to the commission of the act itself. There has to be a Page 9 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined reasonable certainty in regard to the meaning of the words used by the 'inciter' in order to judge whether or not there was an incitement, but it is not necessary, in law, to prove the actual words used for the incitement. The word 'abetment' includes clause-3 namely 'abetment by aiding'. The third way of abetting is by intentionally aiding the doing of a thing by an act or illegal omission. In abetment by 'aid', it is not the intention to aid the commission of crime, that is punished, but the fact that something is done or not done, whereby the commission of a crime is rendered more easy. In instigation, the criminal intention is punished; in conspiracy, the intention plus some act; in aid, the act itself. Reading Cl. 3 of the section with Expl.2, which goes with it, for abetment by aid, four things must be combined :
(i) aid must be actually afforded by means of an 'act or illegal omission';
(ii) there must be an intention to aid thereby;
(iii) the commission of the offence must be facilitated thereby; and
(iv) the act or omission must take place either prior to, or at the time of, the commission of the act intended to be aided.
[9.2] An act which merely amounts to aiding the commission of an offence is not an abetment. The aiding must snowball into 'intentionally aiding' the Page 10 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined doing of a thing. The commission of the act must be the dominant intention of the person who aids it. If a person only knows or has only reason to believe that his act would facilitate the commission of offence, it cannot be said that his dominant intention was that.
[9.3] On one part of the Sub-clause (3) of Section 107 can be divided into two parts for doing and aiding act by making omission in doing an act. At times even refraining from action and mere impassivity makes a person liable to penalty. If person is duty bound to perform his duties in a particular manner and if he does not behaved in a manner, he ought to have, he causes continuous pressure and effects the mental attitude to the victim. The omission on the part of the accused shall include word 'aid' as mentioned in Section 107 of the Indian Penal Code. In present case no such evidence in connection of abetment to suicide being tendered by prosecution.
Thus, the case is required to be considered in the light of the aforesaid settled legal propositions.
[10.0] Perusing the record and papers, it appears that present applicant No.1 is Principal and applicant No.2 is the Professor and coordinator. The deceased was the student of the said nursing college. applicant No.2 had called the deceased and two other students, who were making copy in the test examination. Thereafter, Page 11 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined the deceased and students brought before the applicant No.1, who is principal of the college and applicant No.1-principal has slapped to the deceased and it is alleged that he uttered that instead of doing copy hand to hang and due to alleged incident, on 29.08.2021, the deceased has committed suicide. It appears that the alleged incident took place on 29.08.2021 and complaint is filed on 03.09.2021, admittedly after a period of 4 days. Perusing the papers of investigation, it appears that deceased was caught by harassing the girl students and for that, he had tendered apology letter to the principal on 03.10.2020, which is produced as Annexure-B. Another student, who cited as a witness was also in the company of deceased and he has also admitted his misbehaviour and he has also apologies from the principal and requested to correct his mistake and give one more chance to improve his behaviour. Another witness viz. Joshi Darshan has also given an apology letter on 07.08.2021. Further, on 27.08.2021, the deceased has tendered apology letter to the applicant No.1-principal and applicant No.2-Professor, wherein he has admitted that he misbehaved with the teachers and leak the question papers of final examination of college and for that he apologies. Due to such copy and malpractice in the examination, all the three students were asked to leave the class room and they Page 12 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined have called in the chamber of principal. Considering the gravity and the circumstances, the parents were contacted, but father of the deceased was unable to report in the college on the same day. Further, three students had admitted that deceased - Paresh Suthar, who had sold to them the question papers as well as answer-sheet before the exam. The said question papers and answer-sheet were stolen and already written answer-sheets brought in the examination. On 27.08.2021, examination was scheduled and on 28.08.2021, alleged incident took place and the dead body of deceased was recovered from the Riverfront, Ahmedbad. Considering the aforesaid fact, prima facie, It appears that the present applicants, acting in their capacity as teachers, disciplined the deceased. There is no mens rea on the part of the applicants, and they did not in any way encourage the offence.
[10.1] It appears that the applicant was duty-bound to maintain discipline in the college, oversee student conduct during examinations, and ensure fairness. The deceased and two students cited as witnesses, upon whom the prosecution relied, have apologized for their indiscipline behaviour. In this regard reference is required to be made in case of Geo Varghese vs. State of Rajasthan and Another reported in 2021 SCC OnLine SC 873, wherein the Hon'ble Apex Court Page 13 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined has observed as under :
28. It is a solemn duty of a teacher to instil discipline in the students. It is not uncommon that teachers reprimand a student for not being attentive or not being upto the mark in studies or for bunking classes or not attending the school.
The disciplinary measures adopted by a teacher or other authorities of a school, reprimanding a student for his indiscipline, in our considered opinion, would not tantamount to provoking a student to commit suicide, unless there are repeated specific allegations of harassment and insult deliberately without any justifiable cause or reason. A simple act of reprimand of a student for his behaviour or indiscipline by a teacher, who is under moral obligations to inculcate the good qualities of a human being in a student would definitely not amount to instigation or intentionally aid to the commission of a suicide by a student.
29. 'Spare the rod and spoil the child' an old saying may have lost its relevance in present days and Corporal punishment to the child is not recognised by law but that does not mean that a teacher or school authorities have to shut their eyes to any indiscipline act of a student. It is not only a moral duty of a teacher but one of the legally assigned duty under Section 24 (e) of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 to hold regular meetings with the parents and guardians and apprise them about the regularity in attendance, ability to learn, progress made in learning and any other act or relevant information Page 14 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined about the child."
[10.1.] Considering the fact that as applicants are holding the post of Principal and Professor and they have discharged their duty with full dedication as their moral duty without there being any circumstances to even remotely indicates that there was an intention on the part of the present applicants to abet an offence and no mens rea is attributed to the present applicants. Hence, in absence of the element of abettment, which is missing from the allegations and which is essential for the offence punishable under Section 306 of IPC.
[10.2] The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Kishori Lal vs. State of Madhy Pradesh reported in (2007)10 SCC 797 has held that instigation literally means to provoke, incite, urge on or bring about by persuasion to do anything. Hon'ble Supreme Court has noted that before a person may be said to have abetted the commission of suicide, he must have played an active role by an act of instigation or by doing certain act to facilitate the commission of suicide.
[10.3] In the case of S.S. Chheena vs. Vijay Kumar Mahajan reported in (2010)12 SCC 190, the Hon'ble Supreme Court observed as follows:― "Abetment involves a mental process of Page 15 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined 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 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 306 I.P.C. 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".
[10.4] In the case of M. Arjunan vs. State (represented by its Inspector of Police) reported in (2019)3 SCC 315, the Hon'ble Supreme Court has been pleased to elucidate the essential ingredients of the offence under Section 306 of the IPC in the following observations:
"The essential ingredients of the offence under Section 306 IPC are: (i) the abetment; (ii) the intention of the accused to aid or instigate or abet the deceased to commit suicide. The act of the accused, however, insulting the deceased by using abusive language will not, by itself, constitute the abetment of suicide. There should be evidence capable of suggesting that the accused intended by such act to instigate the deceased to commit suicide. Unless the ingredients of instigation/abetment to commit suicide are satisfied the accused cannot be convicted under Section 306 I.P.C."
[10.5] Similarly, in another judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Ude Singh and Ors. vs. State of Haryana reported in (2019)17 SCC 301, the Hon'ble Page 16 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined Supreme Court expounded on the ingredients of Section 306 of the IPC and the factors to be considered in determining whether a case falls within the ken of the aforesaid provision, in following terms:― "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."
[11.0] Further, 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. However, if the accused kept on irritating or annoying the deceased by words or deeds until the deceased Page 17 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined reacted or was provoked, a particular case may be that of abetment of suicide. Such being the matter of delicate analysis of human behavior, 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. If the persons who committed suicide had been hypersensitive and the action of 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. Conviction under Section 306 IPC is not sustainable on the allegation of harassment without there being any positive action proximate to the time of occurrence on the part of the accused, which led or compelled the person to commit suicide. In order to bring a case within the purview of Section 306 IPC, there must be a case of suicide and in the commission of the said offence, the person who is said to have abetted the commission of suicide must have played an active role by an act of instigation or by doing certain act to facilitate the commission of suicide. Therefore, the act of abetment by the person charged with the said offence must be proved and established by the prosecution before he could be convicted under Section 306 I.P.C. It appears that during the investigation, Police has reported that both the Page 18 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined applicants are having strict nature, but merely having the strict nature, it does not depict mens rea on the part of the applicants. Considering the fact that it appears that applicants are having no past antecedents.
[11.1] The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Gurcharan Singh vs. State of Punjab reported in (2020)10 SCC 200 has held that, as in all crimes, mens rea has to be established. To prove the offence of abetment, as specified under Section 107 of the IPC, the state of mind to commit a particular crime must be visible, to determine the culpability. In order to prove mens rea, there has to be something on record to establish or show that the accused had a guilty mind and in furtherance of that state of mind, abetted the suicide of the deceased.
[11.1] It is apposite to refer to the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Mariano Anto Bruno vs. State reported in (2023)15 SCC 560, wherein in paragraph 45, the Hon'ble Supreme Court observed thus:
"45. ... It is also to be borne in mind that in cases of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be proof of direct or indirect acts of incitement to the commission of suicide. Merely on the allegation of harassment without there being any positive action proximate to the time of occurrence on the part of the accused which led or compelled the person to commit suicide, Page 19 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined conviction in terms of Section 306 IPC is not sustainable."
[12.0] Insofar as the allegation of harassment by the applicants to the deceased leading the deceased to commit suicide is concerned, it is submitted that mere harassment, cannot be sufficient to hold an accused guilty of abetting the commission of suicide, without all the ingredients of section 306 of IPC being proved by the prosecution. In this regard, reference is required to be made to the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Naresh Kumar vs. State of Haryana reported in (2024)3 SCC 573. In paragraphs 22 and 23 of the said decision, the Hon'ble Supreme Court observed and held as under:
"22. This Court in Kashibai vs. State of Karnataka, observed that to bring the case within the purview of "abetment" under Section 107 IPC, there has to be an evidence with regard to the instigation, conspiracy or intentional aid on the part of the accused and for the purpose proving the charge under Section 306 IPC, also there has to be an evidence with regard to the positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid to drive a person to commit suicide.
23. Had there been any clinching evidence of incessant harassment on account of which the wife was left with no other option but to put an end to her life, it could have been said that the accused intended the consequences of his act, namely, suicide. A person intends a consequence when he (1)foresees that it will Page 20 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined happen if the given series of acts or omissions continue, and (2)desires it to happen. The most serious level of culpability, justifying the most serious levels of punishment, is achieved when both these components are actually present in the accused's mind (a "subjective" test)."
[13.0] At this stage, it would also be apposite to refer to the decision in the case of State of Karnataka vs. L. Muniswamy reported in (1977)2 SCC 699, wherein the Hon'ble Supreme Court in paragraph No.7 has observed thus:
"7. The wholesome power under Section 482 CrPC entitles the High Court to quash a proceeding when it comes to the conclusion that allowing the proceeding to continue would be an abuse of the process of the Court or that the ends of justice require that the proceeding ought to be quashed. The High Courts have been invested with inherent power, both in civil and criminal matters, to achieve a salutary public purpose. A court proceeding ought not to be permitted to degenerate into a weapon of harassment or persecution. The Court observed in this case that ends of justice are higher than the ends of mere law though justice must be administered according to laws made by the legislature."
Considering the aforesaid fact, as the applicants have rendered their official and legal duty without there being any circumstances to even remotely indicate that there was any instigation on the part of the applicants to abet the commission of an offence Page 21 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined and much less in absence of any mens rea, there was no any such act or intention that the applicant/s intended to bring about the suicide to deceased. In the examination, malpractice and mischief being done by the three students. Thereafter, they were brought before the office of Principal and scolded. Out of them, only the deceased has committed suicide and others have not taken any untoward and unexpected steps. Considering the aforesaid fact, it appears that due to nature of sensitivity or any other mental status, deceased might have been committed suicide and the said act does not reflect mens rea on the part of the present applicants.
[13.1] It is necessary to consider whether the power conferred by the High Court under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is warranted. It is true that the powers under Section 482 of the Code are very wide and the very plenitude of the power requires great caution in its exercise. The Court must be careful to see that its decision in exercise of this power is based on sound principles. The inherent power should not be exercised to stifle a legitimate prosecution. The High Court being the highest court of a State should normally refrain from giving a prima facie decision in a case where the entire facts are incomplete and hazy, more so when the evidence has not been collected and produced before the Court and the issues Page 22 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined involved, whether factual or legal, are of magnitude and cannot be seen in their true perspective without sufficient material. Of course, no hard-and-fast rule can be laid down in regard to cases in which the High Court will exercise its extraordinary jurisdiction of quashing the proceeding at any stage as the Hon'ble Supreme Court has decided in the case of Central Bureau of Investigation vs. Ravi Shankar Srivastava, IAS & Anr., reported in AIR 2006 SC 2872 and in case of State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal, reported in 1992 Supp (1) SCC 335, the Apex Court has set out the categories of cases in which the inherent power under Section 482 CrPC can be exercised and held in para 102 as under:
"102. In the backdrop of the interpretation of the various relevant provisions of the Code under Chapter XIV and of the principles of law enunciated by this Court in a series of decisions relating to the exercise of the extraordinary power under Art. 226 or the inherent powers under Section 482 of the Code which we have extracted and reproduced above, we give the following categories of cases by way of illustration wherein such power could be exercised either to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice, though it may not be possible to lay down any precise, clearly defined and sufficiently channelised and inflexible guidelines or rigid formulae and to give an exhaustive list of myriad kinds of cases wherein such power should be exercised :
(5) Where the allegations made in the FIR or complaint are so absurd and inherently improbable on the basis of which no prudent Page 23 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined person can ever reach a just conclusion that there is sufficient ground for proceeding against the accused.
(6) Where there is an express legal bar engrafted in any of the provisions of the Code or the concerned Act (under which a criminal proceeding is instituted) to the institution and continuance of the proceedings and/or where there is a specific provision in the Code or the concerned Act, providing efficacious redress for the grievance of the aggrieved party.
(7) Where a criminal proceeding is manifestly attended with mala fide and/or where the proceeding is maliciously instituted with an ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused and with a view to spite him due to private and personal grudge."
In view of above discussion, if the proceedings impugned in the present application are allowed to be continued against the present applicants, it would be gross abuse of process of law and the Court as no offence is made out or disclosed as mentioned in the FIR as necessary ingredients of section 107 of the IPC are not made out.
[14.2] Considering the aforesaid proposition in consonance with the facts of the case on hand, to continue such proceeding against the present applicants would be abuse of process of law and hence, present is a fit case to exercise powers under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C..
[15.0] In wake of aforesaid discussion, present application is allowed. Impugned FIR being CR No.11195019210939 Page 24 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/20822/2021 ORDER DATED: 19/07/2024 undefined of 2021 registered with Deesa Rural Police Station, Banaskantha alongwith all its consequential proceedings is hereby quashed and set aside qua the present applicants only. Rule is made absolute to the aforesaid extent.
(HASMUKH D. SUTHAR,J) KUMAR ALOK Page 25 of 25 Downloaded on : Mon Jul 22 20:50:09 IST 2024