DEMANDING DOWRY ALONE NOT SUFFICIENT GROUND FOR ABETMENT OF SUICIDE: ALLAHABAD HIGH COURT 

14th March 2021

It is necessary to see whether the act by the accused has abusive elements for suicide to prosecute anybody u/s 306 of IPC,  recently held by Allahabad.

A Petition under section 482 CrPC seeking quashing of a charge sheet and a case proceeding of 2010 u/s 306 of IPC pending before the special CMJ, Meerut. The opposite party filed an FIR against the Applicant, stating that the marriage ceremony of the Informant’s daughter and the applicant was fixed, and marriage was scheduled on 16th Feb 2010. On the day of engagement (2009), the Applicant and his family demanded an AC, a Santro car, 20 Tola gold, and Rs 5 lakh. 15 days before marriage, the Applicant called the daughter and threatened her. On the same night, the daughter set herself on fire on account of the threat. 

The Court held, “Even assuming the statement of the doctor, which refers to the statement of the deceased made before the said doctor, to be a dying declaration, it does not disclose any act of abetment, which may be called instigation to commit the act of suicide”.  “There is nothing material for even presuming that the applicants could be held guilty for committing the offense under Section 306 IPC”, “However, the applicants committed offenses under Section 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act”.

Author: Papiha Ghoshal